As a planned sale of municipal-owned land in Chugiak moves forward, some residents feel their concerns are going unnoted.
A19.4-acre parcel on Jasmine Road and roughly 140 acres near the McDonald Recreation Center are among the several properties for sale.
Heritage Land Bank manages these parcels for the municipality.
Bids for the Jasmine Road parcel were opened Wednesday, with a minimum required bid of $546,000.
The appraised property value is based on several factors, including the ability to establish a functioning well and septic system on site, said appraiser Franklin King.
The appraisal assumes the parcel is capable of being subdivided into at least 10 single-family lots, King said, and that also factored into the property value.
Action on the other block of land, the 140 acres near McDonald Recreation Center, has been a point of contention for neighbors as HLB moves forward with a land-use study to sell the acreage.
The HLB commission will review the draft version of the site study during a meeting today before advancing the study to the planning and zoning commission for approval.
Neighbors living along nearby Fish Hatchery Road have expressed concerns over increased traffic and impact to their wells. Many residents say they feel their voices have gone unheard.
“I've already lost two wells when they built the school (Fire Lake Elementary) and I can't afford to lose another one, just so someone can build a bunch of houses,” Bob Hester said.
The plan calls for more than 80 homes on 50 acres.
In addition to the risks to preexisting wells, Hester wonders if there is adequate water for all the planned homes.
“Even if they find water without hurting my well, I can't imagine there will be water for all those houses,” he said. “There's already is a group of homeowners here getting water from a community well.”
Prior to any development or subdivision of the parcels, there will need to be soil test and a hydrology study completed to determine whether the area can sustain additional wells and on-site septic systems, said Tanya Iden, planner for Agnew:Beck, the company that prepared the site study.
Residents are also concerned about the traffic impact that will come from the additional housing proposed in the study.
According to the site study, an additional 200 trips a day on Fish Hatchery Road and other existing roads would be a result of the additional housing. The study also recommends extending the road leading to the McDonald Recreation Center to connect with the network of roads off Fish Hatchery Road.
The additional traffic worries residents like Chris Sadler, whose two children often play on the dead-end Knob Hill Drive that would connect with McDonald Center Road. Sadler worries that increased traffic could put his children's safety at risk.
“If they put high-density housing in, the plan says they will have to make our road a collector street,” she told The Star in November. “We moved here because we wanted to live on a quiet country road.”
The study that will be under review proposes that the 11-acre Muldrow Street parcel be developed into 1-acre parcels for single family homes; the 10-acre Carol Creek residential tract be developed into 1-acre parcels for single family homes; the 40 acre mixed use Carol Creek parcel be a combination of medium-density housing or seven to 10 units per acre over 8 acres and 6 acres of commercial development.
The 22 acres on the Southeast Slope, above Carol Creek, will have the lowest housing density due in part to the steep incline, with no more than five to 10 homes on the entire site.
Sandra Quimby, who lives on nearby MacLaren Street, suggested HLB subdivide the land into smaller parcels prior to sale, as a way to preserve the current nature of the neighborhood.
“By subdividing the parcels into smaller lots, it would decrease the attractiveness of the lots to a developer who might want to develop the land in a manner inconsistent with the rural residential preference of the surrounding neighborhoods,” she said.
To review the draft version of the HLB Commission log on to www.agnewbeck.com.
Reach the reporter at darrell.breese@alaskastar.com.
