Public Hearing, City Hall Auction
A public hearing for a conditional use permit in New Meadows took place during the City Council meeting on Monday, July 13. The meeting began with the mayor’s report and included discussions on the city’s comprehensive plan and action on the much discussed R.V. use permit.
Mayor Julie Good reported that the New Meadows America250 celebrations on July 3 were “fantastic” with over 300 people attending. She said the city is already talking about plans for next year. Good also encouraged everyone to check out the Adams County Historical Society America250 exhibit at the Depot which is open during City Hall hours and most Saturdays throughout the summer. Much effort has been invested in the panels with information about the founding of the United States, Idaho and Meadows Valley.
A once a month music in the park event is being considered, said Mayor Good. Of other upcoming events, she noted National Night Out will be August 4 and the Battle of the Bands event is August 22. Good said that past Thursday she had attended and presented at the St. Luke’s Community Health Fund Improvement Celebration in Boise. Good was one of five presenters from around the state and she talked about the development of the Youth Center. Brundage featured the youth center as the non-profit of the week at a recent Friday concert, said Good, and passed the ski boot for donations toward the cause.
On July 13, Good met with several members of the Blue Cross Foundation who came up to visit and see recent city improvements. The foundation is celebrating its 25th anniversary and is visiting a top partner in each county in Idaho. The last time they were in New Meadows, the skate park was a dirt lot and the youth center was still the recycling building. They were very excited to see all of the changes. Look for a future article for more details on this.
Regarding dust abatement, the mayor and city staff are still in touch with GMCO to get the job finished. They are also looking at a new company for next year that has been well recommended by other nearby counties.
The public hearing for a conditional use permit at 309 S. Heigho Street was opened and multiple people gave prepared comments. The permit requester is Origo Nova, LLC. Their request was for the city to allow multi-family housing in the R2 zone of South Heigho. The council compared this request to a similar one a few years ago for four tiny homes on the same lot. This request was approved with multiple conditions. Ultimately the owner did not move forward with using the permit. Samantha Brown of Origo Nova represented the organization and described the current plans for the lot.
Questions were asked about potential rental rates, restrictions on short term rentals, impacts to the city with a larger dwelling and dark sky compliance. Public comment reflected mixed feelings about the approval noting desire for more housing while expressing concern about the above mentioned topics plus congestion and increased traffic. Council member Shiloh Ryker said in another zone of the city, this would be a different conversation. Councilmember Traci Foster said the design did not align with R2 and cited concerns about congestion. After the hearing was closed, the council moved to action items and a mixed vote ended in denial of the conditional use permit. The council encouraged Brown to apply again if they decided to make new plans.
The council introduced and unanimously approved the issuance of a water revenue bond not to exceed $$905,066.04 for “the purpose of financing the acquisition, construction and installation of improvements to the domestic water system” for the city.
The RV Use permit was amended and approved unanimously. The new wording says the permit may be approved for 90 days with a fee of $300. One hardship extension may be approved for an additional 90 days. Each property may only have this permit approved twice in five years.
The new date for the online auction of the old city hall building was approved for August 20 beginning at 9:00 a.m..
The council continued their discussion and updates to the city’s comprehensive plan. The current plan is available to review on the city’s website. Discussion topics included census data and updating local school listings. They discussed adding verbiage noting the city cannot predict population growth but acknowledges an increased demand for housing. They also planned to add city updates including the new Goldline transportation option and the preschool and childcare at the youth center.
Future meeting topics may include an agreement with the fire department and continued review of the city’s comprehensive plan. The next scheduled city council meeting is Monday, July 29 at 6:30 p.m..
