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Over 1400 acres southeast of the Shadow Valley Golf
Course on Highway 55 may become "Dry Creek Ranch," a
development of between 4300 to 4700 homes.
AND surrounding Shadow Valley Golf
Course on both sides of Highway 55, Kastera homes is planning yet another
"planned community"--Kastera Shadow Valley.
The Dry Creek Valley is a
little known, quiet and pastoral land of stark and rare beauty. It has long
been used as an alfalfa field (it was part of the Jeker farm), and for
horseback riding. Consisting of an ancient flood plain and surrounding hills,
the valley is home to bobcats, foxes, mountain lions, and coyote as well as hawks, pheasants, chukars,
blue heron, and quail. It is on a migration path for many
additional species due to the creek and emptiness of the land. Mule deer have
long utilized the Dry Creek valley, as do pronghorn antelope. The special status Idaho
plant, Aase's onion, thrives there.
TRAFFIC
For the Dry Creek Ranch planned
community, Brookside Lane, now a rural road,
will expand to five lanes leading to the schools. Dry Creek Road will be
paved, but serve only to enter the development, not to exit it. The only
exit road will be on Brookside.
Using the customary 10 vehicle
trips per day per household, this community alone will add 46,000 vehicle trips
PER DAY onto Highway 55. That's more than Eagle at Chinden!!
Add to this the Kastera Shadow
Valley Ranch Planned community and you have gridlock. Of course, all those
cars have to go somewhere--most likely to State Street or Eagle Road. For
a complete eye-opening, frankly
unbelievable-but-true-if-these-developments-continue-unchecked picture of
new traffic proposed for
foothills, click here.
SEWAGE
Apparently the developers are planning to build and operate their own sewage
plant and discharged treated storm drainage and "effluent" into Dry Creek.
Dry Creek is currently a clear
stream that, in winter, runs through the foothills and from there into a
network of canals throughout Eagle. In summer, it is traditionally
"dry"--but once this community is developed, it appears the creek may
continuously have treated storm drain and effluent discharge flowing
downstream.
In studies, perpetual wastewater
discharge into streams results in "eutrophication" which kills fish and
changes the color, taste, and odor of water.
Click here for Idaho EPA details.
OPEN SPACE
Little open space is provided for in the
Dry Creek Ranch planned community. The
density of the homes would range from 2 homes per acre (1/2 acre lots on
average) to 20 "units" per acre. Those would be apartment buildings or tall
condominium complexes. An estimated
10,000-15,000 people are expected to reside in the community--a bit smaller
than the town of Eagle--all within two square miles.
EFFECT ON FOOTHILLS
Grading would be done on the existing foothills "as necessary."
At this time, not only does Dry Creek run through the property, but it has many
rivulets and marshy areas that absorb run-off from the creek. It would be necessary to fill them,
causing the creek water that now fills the wetlands to continue downstream.
(Potentially, this might cause the problem we're seeing on the Boise River,
where upstream developments result in flooding downstream.)
WATER
The Dry Creek Developers have applied for municipal water rights. This means
they can tap into the foothills aquifer for water for their community first,
before private well owners. No one yet knows the true capacity of the
foothills aquifers. We have asked Idaho Department of Water Resources to do
a study. We are awaiting their decision. Lack of sufficient water will
affect all Treasure Valley residents in cost.
SCHOOLS
Dry Creek Ranch developers will apparently provide land for elementary, middle, and high
schools. The taxpayers of the Meridian school district must actually build
and operate the schools. According to an Idaho Statesman report, this
development will have approximately 2,560 students who will need new schools
or transportation to existing schools.
Kastera
Shadow Valley also plans at least one elementary school.
Developers
can provide land for schools, but they do not pay to
build the schools or to staff them.
EMERGENCY
SERVICES
The 10,000 people in this
development--larger than Eagle was in 2000--will need police, fire,
and paramedic
services. The developers pay "impact fees" to help with the cost...but how
far will those fees go in building, staffing, and equipping a new fire
house, perhaps a police station, and EMS services?
VISION OF THE FUTURE
When an area resident protested the size and density of this planned
community, one of the developers replied, "Welcome to Boise in the 21st
century."
The citizens of Boise,
Eagle, and Meridian have spoken loudly about not wanting the foothills
destroyed by high density development. The citizens have said they wish to be good stewards of the land
and to protect the small creatures who call it home. People who love the
Treasure Valley expect, when they look northward, to see nature--to watch the foothills change
through the seasons from snow-capped, to verdant green, to the burnt tan of
summer, to the earthy russet of fall. Instead, they may soon see only the
slate gray and brown of rooftops.
WHO IS BEHIND THIS?
The companies and corporations involved in this planned community are "Land
Baron Investments" of Las Vegas, Nevada; JMM Dry Creek LLC of Dallas, Texas; plus Colliers
International and WRG Design in Boise.
Kastera is a
local company..
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