2022-11-08 David and Brenda Ashworth
Chris Johnson
From:David Ashworth <dave.l.ashworth@gmail.com>
Sent:Tuesday, November 8, 2022 7:56 PM
To:City Clerk
Subject:Kingstown Subdivision Application
External Sender - Please use caution with links or attachments.
November 8, 2022
To the Honorable Mayor and the City of Meridian City Council,
We, in Alpine Pointe, are not in support of the Kingstown application for two prevailing reasons: Density and Traffic.
The transition at the north of the project should be a match or suitable sized lot to the surrounding homes. Alpine Pointe’s
smallest adjacent lot is 12960 square feet, and most of the lots in Kingstown begin at 4000 square feet and the ones next to Alpine
Pointe are primarily 5250 square feet, for a sizable difference of 7710 square feet or more at the northern shared border. Kingstown
lots begin at 4000 square feet next to the smallest Champion Park lot at 10800 square feet. Gross and net densities in Alpine Pointe
are well under three units per acre.
These small, proposed lots are being used to secure an incompatible blanket higher density of R-8 to benefit the applicant to
package and sell the entitlements or to pad an estate lot that may disappear when Phase 2 comes about. This should be a less
dense zoning code, and that would be R-4 zoning with 8000 SF lot minimum sizes and 15-foot minimum rear yard setbacks, as
Alpine Pointe and Champion Park have larger lots than proposed in Kingstown, and a comparable lot would be expected next to
Alpine Pointe and Champion Park neighbors. Delano lots are 5500-6000 SF on the shared border, with single story or single story
with bonus room, and R-4 zoning would be transitional to Delano. In addition, there should not be any two-stories against one-
story homes for privacy and congruency to existing homes.
The second issue is the traffic that will be coming as the neighborhoods’ streets connect, changing traffic patterns. There should
be traffic calming measures built within the Kingstown development to slow the traffic and to also protect the residents in
Kingstown as well as the residents and neighborhoods that connect to the subdivision. New traffic calming consideration should
apply to all the area, as we currently have four schools in the near vicinity, and the civic/school pads have room for expansion.
One might say the traffic issues are down the road from this application, and that is not entirely true, as the past applications that
connect to this infill acreage that have come before the City had roads with many flaws that are out of technical specifications
and the roads were accepted as local streets with lower traffic local street capacities despite their obvious future use. Here we
are 20-25 years later, and our peaceful residential areas are intermingling with newer urban densities and heavy commercial
projects in this area, and our local streets are being unfairly expected to carry more and more of the traffic burdens that arterials
and the highways should be carrying and the connections via this neighborhood will change the traffic. A lot of the local streets have
front-on housing, not conducive to heavier collector road uses and the cut-through traffic. The light at Wingate/Troxel/Ustick is far
overdue, as are improvements at Leigh Field and Locust Grove.
Without improvements to this plan for a housing density R-4 sizes and up and new streets’ traffic calming, this application should
be denied; a remand decision for redesign to Planning and Zoning Commission may not be enough, as there is only one chance to
get this right.
The following items from the current Comprehensive Plan of the City of Meridian applies to this application and should be
considered in your decision.
2.02.02C Support infill development that does not negatively impact the abutting, existing development. Infill projects in Downtown
should develop at higher densities, irrespective of existing development.
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3.01.01A Evaluate comprehensive impacts of growth and consider City Master Plans and Strategic Plans in all land use decisions (e.g.,
traffic impacts, school enrollment, and parks).
3.05.00 Ensure that all planning, zoning and land use decisions balance the interests of the community by protecting private property
rights for current citizens and future generations.
3.07.01A Require all new development to create a site design compatible with surrounding uses through buffering, screening,
transitional densities, and other best site design practices.
3.07.02F Coordinate with transportation agencies to align future needed infrastructure with land use plans and implement through
the development review processes.
5.01.00 Sustain, enhance, promote, and protect elements that contribute to livability and a high quality of life for all Meridian
residents.
5.01.01 Encourage the safety, health, and well-being of the community.
5.01.01B Provide pathways, crosswalks, traffic signals and other improvements that encourage safe, physical activity for pedestrians
and bicyclists.
5.01.02 Support beautiful and high-quality development that reinforces neighborhood character and sustainability.
5.01.02E Support and protect the identity of existing residential neighborhoods.
6.01.02G Work with the Transportation Commission and transportation partners to implement needed neighborhood traffic calming
and address safety concerns.
Thank you.
David and Brenda Ashworth
4375 North Camas Creek Way
Meridian, Idaho 83646
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