2019-09-23 Laurie Bower1
Charlene Way
From:Laurie Bower <plainjump@msn.com>
Sent:Sunday, September 22, 2019 4:51 PM
To:Meridian City Clerk
Subject:44 Residential Spaces on Goddard Creek Way
To whom it may concern,
While I'm glad you're aren't considering more apartments in this area, adding 44 more residential spaces to an
already crowded area is inviting disaster. We already have Apgar Creek Way next to Goddard (and sometimes
on Goddard) blocked all weekend and most evenings because of the Selway Apartments' overflow parking,
since not enough parking was allotted for residents there to begin with. It brings the street down to one lane
most evenings and weekends when people in the apartments get home from work. Add to that the dropping
off of school kids and their walking home along Goddard, and I predict we will have a fatal accident at the
intersection of this new subdivision. People are learning that Goddard is a cut-through to avoid the mess on
Chinden, and speed through on the street (usually doing 35-40), even at bus pickup and dropoff times and
school start and end times. We really need speed bumps along Goddard, but that hasn't been a priority for
ACHD (not enough traffic they say, which I don't understand, when Camas St. near Cassia Park in Boise has
much less traffic with a park and a school by it also.) We've already had one child die from being hit in this
area.
I also predict the new residents will use our Kelly Creek Park, which is a private park for the use of our
residents only. Signs haven't stopped the apartment dwellers from using it (and they don't have to pay for its
upkeep). Unless the developer builds a park along with the housing, I would reject their plan.
Here's the reality of what's happened in this area just since we moved here five years ago. Pals Soccer has
taken over Hero's Park, which is great, and I'm glad to see the park utilized. The downsides have been
speeders most Saturdays and evenings on Goddard Road as parents rush their kid s to games and practices. I'm
surprised somebody hasn't gotten hit already. The trash left behind by the soccer teams has been much less
since we complained. But, If you have to cross Goddard Road at any time of the day (and we walk our dog
daily at different times), you take your life in your hands. I won't even ride my bike along Goddard anymore
(too dangerous). I predict these new residents will also use the numerous walkways in the area (as have the
Selway residents) without having to pay a dime for the upkeep of these common areas. This is definitely not
fair to the rest of us. We've watched our HOA dues rise since we moved here, due to extra maintenance costs.
The crime rate was very low when we moved in (which is one of the reasons we moved here). Property crimes
and vandalism have increased pretty dramatically over the last five years, mostly stemming from teenagers in
the Selway area with too much time on their hands. We've had multiple house and fountain vandalisms and
car break-ins, as well as porch pirates (some of which I don't think was reported, but I've seen the posts on
NextDoor).
Add to that the amount of trash dumped along the street every day by people driving through (I assume from
the amount they don't all live in our subdivisions), and you've made what used to be a nice place to live a
much more challenging area to maneuver through and keep clean.
Isn't there another, less compact alternative? Can't we have a lower density of housing on that land to at least
decrease the negative impact on what used to be a much quieter area?
2
Sincerely,
Dr. Laurie Bower