2022-11-10 Gary and Melanie Quast
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.
Living on a corner lot of Wainwright and Rogue River we are very concerned with the increase in
traffic. Speed is already an issue on Wainwright. Recently there was a van that hit the back of a
parked utility trailer on Wainwright. Opening Rogue River to the new Kingston Subdivision will
increase this traffic, speed, and other issues. Not to mention the impact of additional traffic and
safety concern for the many families and children that walk and ride bikes to the Alpine Point pool
that is located on Wainwright just down from Rogue River.
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.
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,
Gary & Melanie Quast
4081 N. Rogue River Way
Meridian, ID 83646
208-871-1350 & 208-866-1229