HomeMy WebLinkAboutBen Shelton - 3.23Ben Shelton
2498 E Cyanite Drive
Meridian, Idaho 83642
23 March 2017
Dear Mayor DeWeerd,
My wife and I purchased the land that we built our home on in 2008. The cost of the lots in Blackrock
Subdivision at that time were rather high, but we truly wanted to build a home that not only would keep its
value, but be a lot where we could enjoy the gorgeous view of the valley we love. I am a 51` generation Idahoan,
and my Great Great Grandfather helped settle Star. I served 20 years in the military, but when we came home, I
wanted to have a home that we could enjoy for the rest of our lives.
As we began the purchase process, one thing that was truly important to us was that the surrounding areas
wouldn't be built with hundreds of homes that weren't in keeping with the quality of life and value we were
about to invest in. The plans on the internet at that time showed a park and school to our east along with homes
with an R2 rating. The plans for south of us were 5 acre horse lots with homes. We felt comfortable buying our
lot and built our home in 2009.
We need your help. I am not personally opposed in any way to developing the land surrounding us. We knew
that would happen, but we certainly weren't prepared for what the Planning and Zoning Commissioners did at
their meeting last week. They approved up to 60 homes to be built off of Cyanite (only 16 initially because of
sewer restrictions) without putting in a much needed access to Lake Hazel. That leaves all the construction
vehicles and then resident's vehicles coming through our tiny neighborhood full of children on a down hill slope
which doesn't take a rocket scientist to see accidents happening in a short time. That's only one problem. Next
is the fact that although they are building next to estate size rim lots, they are building R4 -R8 size lots (they
include a portion of sagebrush land in their estimates of lot sizes, but that isn't actually part of the lots. They
will only have 5' easements, and they are calling an irrigation canal a "seasonal water feature" as one of their
only amenities. Surely this isn't what our city would want as a transition from estate rim lots.
In closing, I would like you to consider that Eagle shouldn't be the only rim lots in the valley that keep the
surrounding developments around them at a higher standard. We love our home, and have worked hard serving
our country and saved our money so we could purchase it. Please take a look at the East Ridge Estates and Sky
Mesa East proposals. Neither proposal will honor the characteristics of the existing homes.
Thank you for your consideration,
Ben Shelton
Ben Shelton
2498 E Cyanite Drive
Meridian, Idaho 83642
23 March 2017
Dear Meridian City Council,
I am currently a resident of Black Rock Subdivision, and I attended the recent meeting with the
Planning and Zoning Commission. I found some discrepancies in the meeting that I feel need
your attention.
First, please know that I am not in any way opposed to having the surrounding land near my
property developed. However, when we purchased our estate lot and built our dream home,
we never thought that we would be faced with a developer who didn't want to honor the
existing neighborhood's quality and lot sizes. I would like to request that you review their
plans. My lot is a .565 acre lot that is directly to the north of the proposed East Ridge Estates.
(Most lots are .5 acre or more). They have proposed that they extend Cyanite (my street) to
build their first 16 homes (restricted because of sewer lines) and up to 60 homes without any
access to Lake Hazel Road. We only have one small road in and out of our subdivision, which
means that ALL of the traffic from construction workers to homeowners will be driving through
our neighborhood. Our neighborhood has a lot of small children who are outdoors on bicycles,
skates, and even waiting for their school buses. Putting that road in FIRST to connect to Lake
Hazel should be a priority for the safety of every family. I invite you up to our home to see the
hill that they will be coming down (which is NEVER at the posted 25 MPH) and why we need
that road to go to Lake Hazel. ACHD did a study of traffic, and not once did they come up to
Cyanite to see what it was like.
Blackrock residents were not given the ACHD approval summary to view until after the P & Z
hearing because it wasn't uploaded to the City website until after the meeting. We weren't
given the opportunity to make any rebuttal comments during the meeting, so it seemed as
though DevCo had total control.
When we purchased our home, the lots to the south of us were then listed as 5 acre equestrian
lots. The lots to the east of us were listed as R2 with a possible school and park. Now Boise
Hunter Homes wants the property east of us listed as R8 -R15.
In closing, I would like you to consider that North Meridian and Eagle shouldn't be the only rim
lots in the valley that keep the surrounding developments around them at a higher standard.
We love our home, and have worked hard serving our country in the military for 20 years to
save the money to purchase it. Please take a look at these two proposed subdivisions. Neither
proposal will honor the characteristics of the existing estate homes.
Thank you for your consideration.
/y
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Ben Shelton
2498 E Cyanite Drive
Meridian, Idaho 83642
23 March 2017
Dear Planning and Zoning Board,
As a resident of Black Rock Subdivision, I wanted you to know that we did not have access to your ACHD
approval summary until after the Planning and Zoning hearing, because it had not been uploaded to the City
website until March 6th.
First, let me state that I am not opposed to developments happening on the property to both our south and east of
where my lot is in Black Rock Subdivision. However, what was listed on the city/county websites prior to our
purchase of the land and now have drastically changed.
As to the proposed subdivision to our south (East Ridge Estates), the ACHD traffic assessment was done on
Taconic, and not on Cyanite which is the street that is to be extended for that subdivision. DevCo intends to
build intitially 16 homes (they want 60 but 16 is all the sewer line will accommodate) without putting a road to
Lake Hazel. That means hundreds of contruction workers, heavy vehicles, trucks, etc will be using Cyanite on a
daily basis. The homes that currently exist on Cyanite have many children that are outdoors on a regular basis,
as well as waiting for school buses. Having all that traffic with little children makes no sense, and is a recipe for
disaster. Please review the requirement for this subdivision to construct an entry road. It is the simplest way to
ensure the safety of the children in Black Rock and Sky Mesa Subdivisions.
Secondly, please reconsider what North Meridian and Eagle have done to keep the integrity of their rim estate
lot values. Each of those places have developments next to them, yet none have even remotely considered
letting R8 -R15 being part of the plans. Because of those larger lots, and at least the larger transition lots, the
values of the existing homes have remained intact.
I realize you don't know me or my family. But I'm a 5th generation Idahoan. I served as a career military
officer outside of Idaho for over 20 years. I saved and worked hard to be able to come home and have the
ability to purchase the home I live in. Please consider the existing neighborhood and that we should be given a
proper transition from our lots to something bigger than R8.
Thank you for your consideration,
Ben Shelton