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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCarico - Letter of Opposition_ElementRidge_01.06.24Brad Carico 16227 S Kimball Ave Caldwell, ID 83607 Re: Opposition To Element Ridge I wish to submit this document in opposition to the proposed Element Ridge development. While I understand that development in our region is a given, I believe that much of this development has happened at such a pace that careful considerations have not been given to all aspects of this development in our community. I am a retired Battalion Chief with the Caldwell Fire Department, having retired in July 2020 after 26 years of service in the city. In that time, I have seen highs and lows that the city and its staff experienced in that time. My concerns will deal with the impact that this and future developments will have on the infrastructure, staffing of city departments and the quality of life within our community. CONCERN: Traffic 1. During my career, assisting the Fire Marshal, I helped to review subdivisions for fire department requirements and one of the instructions given to me by the Fire Marshal was to make sure the subdivision had at least two entrances to facility emergency vehicle access. As the proposed Element Ridge plat map indicates there will be a main entrance on 10th Avenue in the same general location as the entrance to the Vallivue Middle School and an extension of Kimball Avenue onto David Street. These two entrances would meet the needs of separated entrances in a plan review however these are not particularly good choices. Currently, during certain times of the year and any given day, traffic around the middle school is very heavy and tremendously difficult for any opposing traffic to enter or exit off 10th Avenue from David and Daniel Street. During the recent hearings for Toll Brothers Verbana Ranch project, the developer there was only going to widen the street enough to increase the length of the turn lane into the school. This still would not address the issue of heavy traffic flows in and out of the school parking lot. What type of traffic control devices are going to be required or considered at middle school at the proposed entrance into the Element Ridge subdivision? As far as Kimball Avenue exiting onto Daniel Street is concerned, this is not a viable option either. Daniel Street is narrow, currently has a twenty-mile per hour speed limit and part of the street bordered by Idaho Power high voltage transmission lines. The south end of Kimball Avenue, at Highway 55, is being closed to traffic with the current rebuilding of Highway 55; this will cause more traffic to access Element Ridge through Ashland Drive, Airport Avenue and David Street to access the subdivision and avoid traffic at the corner of 10th and Highway 55. 2. How were the traffic studies conducted for this project? From what I have seen the traffic study does not seem realistic enough for the day-to-day vehicle traffic from Homedale Road to State Highway 55. Currently, Highway District 4 is building a new roundabout at Farmway Road and Ustick Road; the detour route is down 10th Avenue during the construction period, and it is more reflective of what traffic will be like once the Element Ridge and Verbana developments are built. I believe this would be a suitable time to reevaluate the traffic study for Element Ridge and Verbana Ranch. 3. Regarding Highway 55, have there been any discussions concerning the stretch of S 10th Avenue from David Street to Highway 55 during the reconstruction of this 10th Avenue/Highway 55 intersection. This would be an opportune time for discussion to take place about widening this stretch of roadway before final construction of the intersection is completed. 4. Additionally, has any consideration been given to the traffic in and out of the new elementary school being built on South Montana Avenue? While this has not been mentioned much, I do believe that this will be impacted by the Element Ridge development but the design needs of the Montana Avenue/Highway 55 intersection. CONCERN: Water System 1. With the overall rapid growth of the city, what planning has bas done to provide adequate water supply for use by all community members? 2. During the community meetings, plans were shown that a new water storage tank and well would be constructed on a two-acre plot of land at the corner of David Street and Airport Avenue. There are several concerns with these two items in the subdivision. Somerset West and Stetcher subdivisions each have their own community wells, which we fear will be impacted if the city drills a new well in the area. How deep and what impact will these wells have on surrounding residential wells that are outside the city limits? What assurances can the city give the subdivisions that their new well will not impact on our current wells. Will the subdivision wells have senior water rights over the city well, so if our wells are impacted we can have some input on how the city manages the well? 3. With new growth and additional wells, will the city be able to maintain their current ISO ratings for fire flows? This portion of the ISO rating is important and helps determine the insurance rates for the citizens of Caldwell. 4. How many new wells are going to need to be drilled to provide service to Element Ridge as well as all the other projected developments that are projected in the relative to Element Ridge. 5. Who is paying for these new wells? The water department budget is a dedicated fund and is maintained by the user fees that are charged monthly. If the city is drilling the wells will this cause a revision to each Caldwell citizen’s monthly water bills, or will the developer be required to pay for the new well? 6. Concerning the new water storage tank, as I understand the plan the tank will be an above ground tank with approximately ten feet underground. Has the monetary impact of this structure been considered on the neighboring properties to the south of the tank site? One thing the residents on the north side of the Somerset West subdivision have splendid views of the mountain on the north side of Treasure Valley. I would argue that the construction of this large water tank in front of these few residences could constitute an illegal taking by the city as their property values would be damaged. As was pointed at the Verbana Ridge hearing, the houses built around the large water tank at Indiana and Moss were built in such a manner that they faced the rear of any house and not directly in front facing view. Would you like to have a large water storage tank built in front of your house? CONCERN: Wastewater System 1. What impact will this development and any other new developments have on the city wastewater treatment facility? There was a time when Caldwell’s growth was limited by the size and operation of the wastewater facility; the city made extensive investments to upgrade and modernize the plant so new development could occur. The joke at the fire department when the upgrades were completed concerned the growth south of Highway 55. At the time we were told when the city annexed these subdivisions was because crap rolls down hill and Caldwell had a straight shot to a treatment plant whereas Nampa would need to build lift stations to access theirs. 2. My question now, does the wastewater system currently have the capacity to manage this development as well as the newly built or proposed subdivisions? In the general vicinity of our residence alone there are upwards of three thousand new homes being proposed or being built; there must be some impact on the wastewater capacities. While the developers are paying the initial cost of wastewater lines in their developments, who will pay for any upgrades to the wastewater plant when the time comes? 3. Again, the sewer budget is an enterprise fund and is only funded through the user fees if collected from the citizens. At what point will the citizens of Caldwell have to pay for additional improvements through increased user fees? CONCERN: City Staffing 1. I would like to give my thoughts concerning the level of staffing, essential vs. non- essential, that the city currently has and is expected to need in the future. 2. First, addressing emergency services, I know the city has been hiring additional staff for the fire and police department, however, has the city been able to maintain a consistent level of staffing for the fire and police? It has been my experience that the fire department is able to maintain overall staffing levels while the police department has consistently had problems due to staff leaving for better paying jobs at neighboring departments. With the need to provide consistent staffing for these departments, it is sometimes necessary to hold over personnel on overtime to ensure adequate coverage. Before I retired mandatory holdover overtime was a rare thing but talking to my son, who is currently a Battalion Chief at Caldwell Fire, he told me that holdover is a daily fact when scheduling staff. Taking units of service is another problem that occurs when there is not enough staffing for each shift. Station 2, which is the busiest station in the department, is set up to have an engine company and a squad staffed responses. On days when staffing levels are reduced the squad is taken out of service there by reducing the number of units available to respond. For law enforcement there is a comparable situation, but they do they have the luxury of reducing staff levels to run a minimum number of units per shift I can remember times when there were only three patrol units on the road for a given shift. Think of it, three law enforcement officers to deal with sometimes high-risk activities. During these times, if something major happened units from the Canyon County Sheriff’s Office were pulled in to assist, thereby reducing the available number of deputies to respond to emergencies in the County. 3. Looking now at the staffing at the other departments, one only needs to look at the building services parking lot in the morning. I understand that with growth comes the need for additional staffing but at what cost? Each of those vehicles cost a certain amount to operate and maintain. If the number of vehicles is any indication, then the building service department’s budget has expanded exponentially. 4. Currently, everything points to continued growth and overflowing tax coffers. But let me pose this question. What if we experience an economic downturn like the one the city experienced in 2008-2009? Will the city departments be able to hire and maintain an adequate staffing level for the needs of the community? When the downturn occurred, the city was scrambling to get a budget put together that met the public needs and met state statutory requirements. As an example, in 2011, the city and firefighters’ union negotiated the buyout of five senior staff members to reduce the amount of the overall benefits line- item for the department. However, this was not enough to ensure that adequate staff were still working. It became necessary for the city to apply for and receive a two-years FIRES grant to keep six employees on staff that otherwise would have been laid off. CONCERN: Commercial Development 1. With the projected residential growth throughout the southwestern part of Caldwell, where will commercial growth be at to support this new population? 2. With these residential developments along both sides of 10th Avenue and Highway 55, there will be no ground available for commercial development. This lack of easy access to businesses such as grocery stores, gas stations, restaurants, etc. without a lot of driving, will increase the amount of traffic that residents will have to endure. CONCERN: Further Annexations 1. What would the city’s plan be concerning the annexation of existing rural subdivisions, such as ours, into city limits? This question is on the minds of many residents in the Stetcher and Sommerset West subdivisions. What happens if the city decides to annex our subdivisions; are we going to be forced to hook up immediately to city services, what is the expense going to be for city serviced hookup and what would our monthly costs be? When would the city services be run into the subdivision?