Seeking a fair hearing for Job's View project

This letter is being written to the citizens of Douglas County in response to recent opinion letters raising concerns about the proposed Job's View subdivision. It would be impossible to address all concerns in one letter given length constraints. This being the case, I am hopeful that The Record-Courier will publish a series of my letters in order to address all concerns. I want to make it eminently clear that it is not my desire, nor will I make an effort, to influence the opinion of the small group of citizens who oppose all new development regardless of merit. I respect their rights as American citizens to their opinions. To all other concerned citizens, I will respond to the issues openly, honestly and to the best of my ability.

First, I would like to respond to Wayne and Debbie Walters' concerns expressed in their letter in the Aug. 16 R-C. I apologize to anyone that felt left out of our first public informational meeting held July 25. We hope to hold a second, and possibly a third meeting. The dates for these meetings have not yet been set, but will be published in the paper and direct mailed to area residents throughout the Johnson Lane area. It was necessary to limit the number of people, invited to the first meeting, due to meeting space constraints (we are currently looking for a larger venue). We do not intend to leave anyone out of the informational process and have taken the further step of providing a web page that will be very detailed and informative. That page will be available in the next couple of weeks and we will publish that web address.

A second concern was "who will pay for all of this?" in reference to roadway improvements, utility infrastructure, schools and emergency services with the comment that, "Surveys and studies need to be done on all these items before any deal is cut." I could not agree more. A traffic study was commissioned and completed prior to our initial design. Due to the concerns raised at the first informational meeting some redesign was done and an updated traffic study is being prepared. It is our intent to make a positive financial impact on Douglas County. I would like to go into the issue of traffic in more detail in a future letter.

The third concern was "Why is the project going so fast?" Douglas County sets submittal dates and hearing dates for these applications. The master plan zoning change request and the planned unit development applications will be submitted concurrently in September. The planning commission will review the application and make its recommendation in November, and the county commissioners will hear and vote on the applications on Dec. 7. It is the commissioners' prerogative to continue an item if additional information is required.

The fourth concern was the need for "controlled growth." I am a proponent of controlled smart growth and the implementation of a building permit allocation system that is consistent with the master plan and supported by appropriate data. It is our intention to fully conform to whatever plan for controlled growth the county adopts. We certainly do not plan to build 400 homes all at once. If approved, our plan is to begin construction in the summer of 2008, and to phase construction over six to10 years, averaging 40-65 homes per year, depending on market demand. At the present, there is very little demand for new homes.

It is my hope that The R-C will allow me, in future letters, to address other concerns and questions regarding the Job's View project such as those raised by Sue Kyle in her letter to the editor also in the Aug. 16 edition. We are all blessed to live in a county were all concerned citizens are encouraged to ask questions, expect answers, develop informed opinions and be heard.

n Bill Merrill is manager of Job's View LLC and a Minden resident.