Board shelves Willow Creek project

A proposed 471-lot housing development on Foy’s Lake Road was tabled indefinitely Tuesday night.

Hubert Turner, developer with his father, Wayne, of the Willow Creek subdivision near the U.S. 93 Bypass, drew the wrath of at least one member of the Kalispell Planning Board after more than two hours of public discussion.

“You make a total mockery of this board and this city and the trails people,” C.M. “Butch” Clark scolded Turner.

He also referred to Turner’s 11th-hour submittal of thick binders detailing revisions he hoped to make in the project. An earlier version of Willow Creek was approved in December 2007.

Clark had extensively questioned Turner on his revised proposal for a Great Northern Historical Trail crossing near U.S. 2, stormwater retention along Foy’s Lake Road and the size of the subdivision’s central street.

Clark chastised Turner for being surprised by subdivision requirements even though he had been working with the city on the project since 2006.

“When I did my first development [50 years ago], I knew where I was going before I started,” Clark told Turner.

“And then you built that cliff,” he continued, referring to a 30-foot cut the Turners chiseled into the south slope of their land as they prepare for an entry road.

Several board members earlier had questioned whether Turner could meet stormwater retention requirements and make a visually appealing entrance to the subdivision with such a steep grade.

“It was very presumptuous of you to go ahead and build the road,” Clark said.

He then offered an amendment to an earlier motion to approve the project, proposing to table it indefinitely.

The amendment passed 5-1, meaning that unless Turner returns to the board with acceptable revisions, the board is not obligated to consider it again.

With the Planning Board’s vote, the Turners lost their latest bid to revise their plans.

Original subdivision plans included 531 lots and a significantly different configuration from the design they brought back to the Kalispell Planning Office in January. At that time they asked for 455 lots and several “relaxations” in conditions of approval.

By the time it made it to the Planning Board’s April 12 work session, the re-revised proposal was at 471 lots.

At that meeting, Rails to Trails volunteers asked for a safer crossing where the trail intersects Willow Creek’s north-south road funneling traffic onto U.S. 2.

They preferred a bridge to carry the trail over the new road, avoiding confrontations on what would easily be the busiest road on that stretch of trail. Turner wanted an at-grade crossing.

Board members asked Turner to work out a compromise before this week’s public hearing. Senior Planner Sean Conrad made two follow-up contacts urging Turner to set up a meeting.

The next time he or the Rails to Trails people heard from Turner was last week, when Turner presented an at-grade crossing design to Conrad. Rails to Trails was meeting that night, but Turner arranged a separate May 10 meeting at City Hall.

“I heard you loud and clear that I needed to go to Rails to Trails, and I was on the phone with my engineer [asking for a safer crossing design] when Mr. Conrad called me the next morning,” Turner said.

He said the redesign took 10 or 11 days. Turner then set up a meeting with Alex Hogle at the county planning office, which has jurisdiction over that stretch of land. Because of a death in the family, Turner said, Hogle was unable to meet until May 3.

Hogle approved the design that day as meeting minimum county standards and Turner said he immediately submitted the plan to Conrad and subsequently set up the May 10 meeting.

Turner’s plan for his road raises it about three feet higher than the current grade so its stormwater culvert will clear city sewer and water lines.

But even at that grade it is 6 1/2 to 7 feet below the current trail grade and would require a dip in the trail at the crossing. Proponents said that destroys trail users’ momentum and sets them up for traffic confrontations.

Conrad also pointed out other concerns with Turner’s revised plans:

n The depth of fill, after Turner’s road cut to the south, required to bring a pedestrian path and landscaping to city standards along Foy’s Lake Road would be considerable and possibly compromise the design.

n Its steepness would mean greater demands on a stormwater retention area and possibly send more water onto neighboring properties on the south side of Foy’s Lake Road.

n About half the entire development would be cut and fill. Depth of the fill on the east side of the development would be as much as 12 feet, putting its stability into question.

On Wednesday morning, Conrad said the Turners had visited the Planning Office to talk about the trail crossing. City Planning Director Tom Jentz encouraged them to meet with Rails to Trails volunteers to find some middle ground.

Reporter Nancy Kimball can be reached at 758-4483 or by e-mail at nkimball@dailyinterlake.com