HomeMy WebLinkAboutWendy McKinneyChris Johnson
From: Tammy de Weerd
Sent: Friday, December 14, 2018 1:27 PM
To: W McK
Cc: mayortammy; citycouncil; C.Jay Coles; Chris Johnson
Subject: RE: Another Continuance is needed on Linder Village
Dear Wendy,
Thank you for taking time to share your thoughts and comments with your local elected leaders. As your Mayor, I
appreciate hearing what is on your mind and heart. I know your City Council members appreciate you weighing in as
well and sharing your opinion on the issues that they will be making decisions on.
Because this project is part of an open application, our City Council members are prohibited from commenting
outside the public hearing. We take public feedback seriously and want you to know that we have received your
email and have read your comments.
Your email has been forwarded to our City Clerk and will be included in the public record. We'd encourage you to
check our website, meridiancity.org, for information regarding the public hearing process and invite you to attend
the hearing(s) on this issue.
If you have questions about the process feel free to reach out to my office at 208-489-0529 or our Planning staff can
get you the answers regarding our process. Their number is 208-884-5533.
My best,
Mayor Tammy
Mayor Tammy de Weerd
City of Meridian
33 E. Broadway Ave., Meridian, Idaho 83642
Phone: 208-489-05291 Fax: 208-884-8119
Built for Business, Designed for Living
www.meridiancity.org/mayortammy
All e-mail messages sent to or received by City of Meridian e-mail accounts are subject to the Idaho law, in regards to
both release and retention, and may be released upon request, unless exempt from disclosure by law.
From: W McK [mailto:wmckinnus@gmail.com]
Sent: Wednesday, December 12, 2018 2:09 PM
To: mayortammy; Anne Little Roberts; Joe Borton; Ty Palmer; Treg Bernt; Genesis Milam; Luke Cavener; City Clerk
Subject: Another Continuance is needed on Linder Village
Ugh - another continuance is needed for Linder Village. I personally would've preferred
that DMG accepted the original adjustments P&Z gave them (flipping the entire project
180 degrees) and presented that for you to approve. They chose not to. Why?
Arrogance, I think.
What will it take to get DMG to comply like everyone else has to in this City?
Council asked them to do two things:
1- Work with the community. It may look like they have, but they have not. At meetings
I've gone to, they've shown us the plan and basically said take it or leave it. That's
what's going there. Only when you demand things do they almost get around to doing
them.
When the P&Z voted 0-5 (something which happens less than once a year) and told the
developer to redesign it and comply with a list of requirements for that site, they did
very little and expected they could win you over.
Thankfully, you did not allow them to proceed. You saw thru their arrogance then.
Other developers have taken suggestions and worked with the community. Although
you'll see a few changes to the initial plan (from 12 years ago, 3 years ago and 2 years
ago, even nine months ago), those changes are minute compared to what you as a
city asked them to do.
Why do they constantly side step the Comprehensive Plan? Because they don't want to
comply with it, use it or let you think about it.
"It's not law." This is a phrase the developer has used over and over again. True -
Zoning is what matters.
What you decide is the law. Once you have annexed this property into the City of
Meridian and established the zoning for this area, it won't change.
If the Comprehensive Plan is not the blueprint the city wants developers and residents
to rely on, why did you make it in the first place?
And why take the time to make a new one and ask for millions of man hours
developing it?
What about compliance to safety rules and acceptable conduct?
These are also components of a good, thriving, well thought out neighborhood or
shopping center. This development is still not well thought out. What will it take?
Perhaps an outright denial so they have a strong hand telling them to go back and work
with everyone. Give them the message - "Don't change the system - work with it." If you
had rejected their proposals a year ago, would they be more ready now to be in
compliance?
K
If that non-compliance isn't enough, they have no respect for you, for us or for your
staff. Will you put up with their unacceptable conduct? I hope not.
The only question we should be asking here is HOW LONG will it take for this
developer to do what he knows he should've done 12 years ago? What everyone else
in this city is required to do? If you want a 24/7 establishment, go through the process
of amending the Comprehensive Plan. EVERYONE else has to. Sincerely, Wendy
McKinney
1225 W. Bacall St. Meridian, ID 83646
3
C.Jay Coles
From:W McK <wmckinnus@gmail.com>
Sent:Wednesday, December 12, 2018 2:09 PM
To:mayortammy; Anne Little Roberts; Joe Borton; Ty Palmer; Treg Bernt; Genesis Milam;
Luke Cavener; City Clerk
Subject:Another Continuance is needed on Linder Village
Ugh - another continuance is needed for Linder Village. I personally would've preferred
that DMG accepted the original adjustments P&Z gave them (flipping the entire project
180 degrees) and presented that for you to approve. They chose not to. Why? Arrogance,
I think.
What will it take to get DMG to comply like everyone else has to in this City?
Council asked them to do two things:
1- Work with the community. It may look like they have, but they have not. At meetings
I’ve gone to, they’ve shown us the plan and basically said take it or leave it. That’s what’s
going there. Only when you demand things do they almost get around to doing them.
When the P&Z voted 0-5 (something which happens less than once a year) and told the
developer to redesign it and comply with a list of requirements for that site, they did very
little and expected they could win you over.
Thankfully, you did not allow them to proceed. You saw thru their arrogance then.
Other developers have taken suggestions and worked with the community. Although you’ll
see a few changes to the initial plan (from 12 years ago, 3 years ago and 2 years ago,
even nine months ago), those changes are minute compared to what you as a city asked
them to do.
Why do they constantly side step the Comprehensive Plan? Because they don’t want to
comply with it, use it or let you think about it.
“It’s not law.” This is a phrase the developer has used over and over again. True - Zoning
is what matters.
What you decide is the law. Once you have annexed this property into the City of Meridian
and established the zoning for this area, it won’t change.
If the Comprehensive Plan is not the blueprint the city wants developers and residents to
rely on, why did you make it in the first place?
1
And why take the time to make a new one and ask for millions of man hours developing
it?
What about compliance to safety rules and acceptable conduct?
These are also components of a good, thriving, well thought out neighborhood or
shopping center. This development is still not well thought out. What will it take? Perhaps
an outright denial so they have a strong hand telling them to go back and work with
everyone. Give them the message - "Don’t change the system - work with it." If you had
rejected their proposals a year ago, would they be more ready now to be in compliance?
If that non-compliance isn't enough, they have no respect for you, for us or for your staff.
Will you put up with their unacceptable conduct? I hope not.
The only question we should be asking here is HOW LONG will it take for this developer
to do what he knows he should’ve done 12 years ago? What everyone else in this city is
required to do? If you want a 24/7 establishment, go through the process of amending the
Comprehensive Plan. EVERYONE else has to. Sincerely, Wendy McKinney
1225 W. Bacall St. Meridian, ID 83646
2
Chris Johnson
From: W McK <wmckinnus@gmail.com>
Sent: Monday, November 12, 2018 3:10 PM
To: City Clerk; mayortammy
Subject: Linder Village proposal
Our neighborhood has been meeting since January of 2016 regarding the area designated now as
the Linder Village development. As soon as we saw the irrigation ditch was being put into pipes,
we knew something would be built there. We were excited and worried and since then have
learned a lot of acronyms. We appreciate your time in considering this and look forward to finally
resolving this property. It must be done correctly as it affects so many people - not only us in this
neighborhood and everyone who will shop and live here, but everyone who drives down Chinden.
We like the fact that Meridian is a vibrant, growing community. Reasonable growth helps people
want to continue moving here. Let's keep Meridian great and not turn it into another large suburb
like the ones people are moving out of.
David McKinney, the developer, has not been an easy person to work with. And I've said that
about very few people in my life. I am grateful for the small changes that have been made on the
project. But the major issues still stand before us. They are trying to make a horse fit into a
chicken coop. They have too much planned for this space. If we could turn back the clock and
have a reasonable developer that took the original advice of the P&Z commission and flipped their
entire development so the large buildings were smaller, separated but clustered (not a strip mall
or three in a row) and next to Chinden with smaller buildings buffering their noise, they'd already
be digging, a lot of time wouldn't have been wasted and we'd have great businesses nearby
sooner.
We deserve to be able to sleep in our homes with no major noises during the late night and early
morning hours. This site would best work with a Waremart - Winco could build one here with very
little problem, but they won't. If you approve a Winco here, restrict their hours of delivery the
same as you're asking Costco to do. Our existing homes are much, MUCH closer than those there.
Walgreeens and other drive thru businesses on McMillan and Linder are not allowed 24/7
privileges and our existing homes are MUCH closer. I should not have to move so I can sleep
soundly at night. This is a real issue.
Too much and too big for the spot: This development has been slotted for a mixed use
community. According to your guidelines, when you zone this property, there should be nothing
larger than a CC zone. And yet, Winco is going in there? No - that's a CG zoned property,
obviously. So - why are they not actually follow the rules instead of getting one variance after
another until you have a C -G property in a CC spot? That's their attempt. Don't give in to this
tactic. It makes zoning a joke. They should submit a formal adjustment to the Comprehensive
Plan. No regionally significant businesses fit in a mixed use community designation. Look at the
addresses of the people who are for this development and against it. Perhaps you should consider
the opinions of those who live within a mile more heavily - for a mixed use COMMUNITY
development. Why should this developer, who wants to change the Comprehensive plan on his
own get to put in such large businesses in here? He must do as everyone else does. Brighton and
Costco followed the city's procedures and rules on this. Will you make Dave McKinney and Winco
do the same?
Safety & Access to neighborhood: We appreciate the adjustments made to the original plan
so there is no connection in at Arliss. The parallel street to Chinden is one we've asked for since
1
the first hearing. That's a good start, but this will not change the traffic thru our neighborhood to
the unplanned newer neighborhood and development. We need to be safe. You cannot turn our
neighborhood streets into collector streets. That never works.
Inadequate information to make a decision yet: As an HOA Advisory Board member of over
4 years here in Paramount, I know a lot of neighbors and much of what has been done by
Brighton to help our community be one of the best in the State. David McKinney, the developer,
has not been honest about what Brighton will and won't do. He has not sat down with them and I
would suggest you do not take his word for an actual access across Brighton's property to Fox
Run. I know there was to be a meeting between ACHD, Brighton, the city and this develpoer
regarding Chinden and access to Linder Village. I don't know the results of that, but it would be
helpful for us to have that information before the zoning is decided.
We don't have the results from ACHD. If there's a new traffic study, we deserve time to see it and
review it before a public hearing.
I truly wish we could be working with a developer who would listen to and respect other's time
(ours, the city staff's, the mayor's the city council's and the planning and zoning commission's)
and prepare plans based on the Comprehensive Plan, but we don't have such a person. I suggest
we postpone any zoning decisions until after the ACHD has put forth their recommendations and
Brighton has given permission or denied it across their land.
Sincerely,
Wendy McKinney
1225 W. Bacall Street
Meridian, ID 83646
Paramount HOA Advisory Board Member
ri