HomeMy WebLinkAbout2025-08-11 Dianne HoughSATURDAY, MAY 109 2025
APPRO. 12:00 NOON
AUTHOR'S NOTE
AN ATTEMPT WAS MADE TO SECURE THE POLICE REPORT (to be accurate for this presentation) ,
BUT, I WAS INFORMED BY THE POLICE DEPT. AT WATERTOWER THAT A CRIMINAL LAWSUIT
WAS PENDING AND IT COULD NOT BE RELEASED UNTIL THAT MATTER IS RESOLVED. I CAN,,
HOWEVER, SHARE MY PERSONAL PHOTOS OF THIS ACCIDENT FOR YOUR INFORMATION..
We were headed home traveling north on Ten Mile and pulled over
a number of times for emergency vehicles, to learn that this incident
blocked our access to our neighborhood, Bainbridge Subdivision.
Thus, I was inspired to document the event while police, firetrucks,
EMTs did their work. Compliments to Meridian's emergency services!
As I understand, the large dog and the small dog were both in the
badly damaged vehicle, however, that could not be verified without
the police report. ** In the photo with the large dog is the son of a
neighbor who called his adult son nearby (who was cleaning his
garage). We do have caring neighbors who stepped up to help!
The final page of photos taken on the date of this accident, show
the location of the 2 acre parcel Ire- - ut has proposed to occupy.
It is logical to assume that their intended high traffic flow will only add
an additional danger to this intersection as their customers must use
Ten Mile and Lost Rapids for access.
"Possibly the City Council Members can obtain that information for their knowledge
and determination on this community issue.
:�H VEHICLES IN VIEW
DAMAGED CAR
FHE FOLLOWING PICTURES WERE TAKEN ON AUGUST 8, 2025 IN PREPARATION FOR CITY COUNCILS REVIE
OLIVIA SIGNAGE AT CURB OF INTERIOR ROAD
SIDEWALK & MOW STRIP BORDER LOST RAPIDS
These Last few pictures are
iwcLudeot to heLp awo cito
Co"P%zU Members Get a feeLiwo
for the area. You. caw't possibLU
visit every w60hborhood that
Uouare, m0ze®ltomalzeaw
exception. for. That's why ! 01 K&
su.bmu ttiwc) sets of pr'Lwted copo
just �w case Uou weed more 6me
to review this proposaL.
Thawl2 You. ALL for Your
Cowsideratiow! DH-
from the desk ofDj,7nnC-% Hollaby REALTOR
Amherst -Madison Real Estate / 592 N Benjamin Lane, Boise, ID 83704
•> .. - • ,
RE: CR — 2025 — 0002 DENIAL OF H-2024-0058 August 8, 2025
TO THE HONORABLE MAYOR & ELECTED CITY COUNCIL OF MERIDIAN, IDAHO:
As a child I grew up in Meridian right across from the Meridian Speedway and
walked to the old original grade school past the heart of the town. During that
time my parents had 4 children, a cherry tree out front, and a huge back yard at
111 N 3rd Street. That home still stands today and I love to drive by it for the
memories it brings. There has been an additional rental moved onto that big
yard, the cherry tree is gone and a concrete company on Franklin uses the rest of
the area for storage right now. As young children we would watch for the sugar
beet trucks headed to Nampa with their load. When they hit a bump on Franklin
we would scamper to gather a sugar beet or 2 on left on the shoulder of road.
I don't remember what we did with those beets, but my guess is Mom helped
them disappear as playthings. It is fitting that I write you around the time of
Meridian Dairy Days as it was always wonderful for us! And, one year our very
own babysitter, Annie Bedard, was named the Dairy Queen! Daddy sold cars for
Larry Barnes and Mom led Brownie & Girl Scout Troops along with Sarah Ewing
who was a well-known Realtor. Today, I am a Realtor of 25 years. My husband
Bob & I met at BSU where I was a cheerleader and the likes of a talented Kipp
Bedard came onto football team a few years later! Please do not read this as
though I live in the past as nothing could be further from the truth.
I am forward thinking and most grateful for my humble beginnings in Meridian.
Please accept my apology for my need to reminisce. But, it is important that the
City Council understand my level of commitment to our community. Growth is
essential to keep Meridian current and vibrant for all our citizens, while
protecting the lifestyle we all love here.
We have 3 grandsons and our youngest, Zander Seely, was a Young Entrepreneur
the past two summers, opting to bake & sell shortbread at the Meridian Farmer's
Market instead of mowing lawns. It is programs like this that makes Meridian
stand out for our youth while fostering skills for their futures. Thank You.
Both Bob and I are lifetime Idahoans (with the exception of one year when his
work with Boise Cascade took us to Palo Alto, CA) - AND — of course we are Big
BSU Fans! We now reside in Meridian's lovely Bainbridge Subdivision, complete
with the Keith Bird Legacy Park as a center piece which is alive with lots children
playing soccer, flag football, and plenty of dog walkers._
The growth of Meridian is exciting for us but most likely quite challenging for you,
our City Leaders. Our fields are being developed into subdivisions at an alarming
rate. Nothing needs to stop, but management is critical for our valley. I am a
believer that we must share what we have here with others. Yet, our Utah
developers choose to live in Utah and develop in Meridian. That's to name David
Turnbull, of Brighton Corporation and Trevor Gasser (pronounced Gasser) both of
Utah. Being a Realtor, I have utmost respect for Developers. Brighton
Corporation builds exceptional communities in this area. David Turnbull sold the
perimeter (commercial use) lands of this project to Gasser and proceeded to build
homes with his team of builders including a gated community, Cadence. In all,
we currently have 855 homes and apartments in this development. (I have
excluded the homes East of Black Cat Road/Chinden which Turnbull sold Cory
Barton (CBH) early on.)
In a recent phone conversation with Trevor Gasser he shared with me that he has
held a contract with In—N—Out for over 2 years! And he built and is the owner of
the Olivia Apartments just across the interior road which was built by Costco to
accommodate traffic flow. The initial development plan from Gasser was for two
more retailers on that two acre parcel as documented in the demand you now
have from In—N—Out to reverse the decision of the Planning and Zoning
Commission . I urge you to support the P&Z decision as what In—N—Out plans is
to have is a 48 car, two lane drive thru. 48 cars parked in line with fumes filing
the air just to pick up their food. THIS ACTION REQUIRES A MOST CRITICAL
CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT WHICH I HOPE YOU WILL DECLINE. 95% of the
homeowners in Bainbridge oppose the In—N—Out at that location. AND 100% of
the Cadence members are certain they do not want that business at that corner.
Since Gasser owns the apartments, he must have a long term plan for that. But I
ask, why do these investors need to make their money in Idaho at the expense of
longtime Meridian residents? (That expense being our property values and
peaceful living.)
I have offered to Trevor to find him a more suitable client for this space. A true
restaurant without the need of a MEGA -DRIVE THROUGH; a periodontist needing
to service Meridian; an emergency care facility... so many better options that
could truly benefit this area! Yes, there are other drive thru fast food restaurants
surrounding Costco. Lots of them. Gasser brought them in most likely to pave
the way for the Blockbuster Drive Thru of the In-N-Outs. But none of the existing
drive thru vendors have the overwhelming traffic that has become the flagship of
the In—N—Out business plan. NO DOUBT the In—N—Out is a major drive thru
FIRST and a "gathering place" or walk in restaurant SECOND. There are many
locations in Meridian that could handle this strategy. Gasser himself has control
of several of them. I will be calling him again to see if he could offer them a
prime location at Franklin & Ten Mile and switch them to that location. If he will
not, I'll be calling Tommy Ahlquist to see what he might have. Also, Brighton still
has some commercial spots near the freeway, but that may interfere with the
Nampa In—N-Out location. I also see some commercial availability at Chinden &
N Linder near WINCO. But I will approach Gasser first to help him keep his client.
There is always a way to make things work better for everyone.
I have read the most recent demand from In—N—Out and am offended they
encourage you to not stand by the work of the Planning and Zoning Commission's
4 —1 decision to decline this project. Their suggestion that P&Z made errors, and
their insistence that their operation will not negatively affect our community is
absurd. Simply sacrificing a few late hours off their schedule is not enough.
I fully understand this is business and growth - but it must be fair business! There
is a reason why placing an In—N—Out at this location was NOT announced sooner.
Some of us would not have bought homes in Bainbridge had the plans for this
corner been disclosed by Mr. Gasser 2 years ago. I fully understand the dynamics
involved, but the homeowners in this community are above this form of
deception by omission.
As a matter of fact, the homeowners in Bainbridge felt they were heard for the
first time at the last Planning & Zoning Hearing. Please, please don't let us down.
I APPRECIATE YOUR TIM AND CONSIDERATION I
Dianne (Norris) Hough, Bainbridge Homeowner
FOOTNOTE:
Since we have lived in Bainbridge there have been a number of accidents at the two Northern most
intersections of Ten Mile Road which ends at Chinden. These intersections both have traffic lights and
multiple lanes at Ten Mile & Lost Rapids and Ten Mile & Chinden which are approximately 500 yards
apart. There has been tremendous activity and development surrounding the Meridian Costco Store, so
I requested an accident report from the Meridian Police Department. The data provided off the system
has to be reorganized for presentation purposes. The attached printout is the result, for your review.
ACCIDENTS OF RECORD
TEN MILE & CHINDEN and TEN MILE & LOST RAPIDS
Request was for2019 thru the date of the accident on May 10, 2025
2019 01/24/19
2020 01/07/20
2021 01/24/21
2022 01/10/22
2023 01/19/23
2024 01/03/24
12/12/19 12 IS 32
12/11/20 12 0 10
12/28/21 12 M 16
12/21/22 12 01 22
12/26/23 12 IS 27
12/25/24 12 N 19
2025 02/19/25 05/10/25 4 10
COMMENT- ACCIDENTS THRU 5/10/25 *136
With only 4 months reported to date we can predict a record year
for accidents at these two intersections without the added traffic
that Ih-N-Out Burgers promises bring to our neighborhood. DH
OF THE 136 ACCIDENTS 96 WERE AT CHINDEN &TEN MILE
WHILE 40 ACCIDENTS WERE AT LOST RAPIDS &TEN MILE