SPOKANE, Wash. – Within a day, Jeremy Roewe’s picture on the social media app NextDoor started to pick up traction. It was a photo announcing the notice of application for the Marshall Creek development, a proposal that would turn 121.5 acres of land off Cheney-Spokane Road in Eagle Ridge into 425 single-family lots.
The nearly 70 comments included statements like “what about water” and “not enough infrastructure for this,” highlight concerns .
These concerns were enough to make Spokane City Council place moratoriums on new development in the area; first, a six-month pause will start in September 2022, and then a current one-year ban will be put in place this May. Yet, at the time of the most recent moratorium, the city says there were 15 developments still in the works.
“One smaller development here, one smaller development there, there’s an ability to potentially work with that,” Kai Huschke with Citizens Action for Latah Valley said. “But when you have 16, 17, 18 developments, one of largest sizes – 400-plus homes – it has strains in so many different ways.”
According to the engineer in charge of the project Todd Whipple, more infrastructure, including new roads from the area to downtown Spokane and a new water reservoir, are coming from their end. He said it’s the most intensive process he’s seen over the 12,000-15,000 lots he’s helped develop over the years, one that will cost the developers about $5 million.
Concerned residents can submit their comments to the Spokane Senior Planner Ali Brast at abrast@spokanecity.org until Aug. 26 at 5 p.m. There will be a public hearing before the City of Spokane Hearing Examiner on Sept. 19 at 9 a.m.
