Opinion: Why I voted for HURA expansion after campaigning against it
City of Hayden Councilman Thomas Shafer advocates for HURA expansion to address traffic concerns
Guest opinion by Thomas Shafer
After the completion of the City Council meeting on March 26, 2024, I received texts and emails from people expressing their disappointment.
It’s What You Know on the Inside
It's not what you know when you're on the outside looking in; it's what you know once you're on the inside, and things aren't good.
Hayden's transportation infrastructure is in dire risk.
Based on what I know at this time, the City of Hayden does not have the funding structure to fix and update its existing roads, and the problem keeps getting "kicked down the road".
Traffic flow on Government Way is one of the most precarious issues. When Hayden Canyon comes on line, we will see how bad it gets.
In the 2022 citizen survey, growth and traffic were the biggest gripes.
The Former Mayor
At the beginning of the City Council meeting, former Mayor Scott Forssell spoke during public comment. He denounced "misinformation" posted on social media with regards to HURA and then said if city council did not vote for this expansion that we are in favor of raising every Hayden citizen’s taxes by a substantial amount.
Firstly, since former Mayor Forssell insists it is HURA or taxes, then I rhetorically ask, what did he do about the dire funding structure while he was mayor?
Secondly, former Mayor Forssell is correct about the tax thing. For a long time our city officials have publicly prided themselves on “our low levy rate”. That is part of the reason why the City is in this current bind.
As for HURA, I stand by some of my original complaints about it. It’s an entity that disrupts the normal tax structure, and I believe props up some special interests in Hayden. One former member of HURA has been quoted as saying “It’s like free money!” and I find that notion detestable.
The Decisions on March 26
If you look at the proposal before council on March 26, you will see that the expansion was broken into three separate parts. We had the opportunity to vote ‘yes’ or ‘no’ three separate times. The first vote was for four different zones (1A, 1B, 1F and 1K) that overlap important intersections on Government Way where either stop lights and/or turn lanes are required. These are at Honeysuckle, Orchard, Lacey and Wyoming. These intersections need to be fixed and the cost will be many millions of dollars. The City does not have the money to address these improvements as far as I can tell. But HURA does.
Portions of these intersections are already in the Hayden Urban Renewal District, but all four corners are required be in the District in order to fund the improvements. So I voted yes even while expressing concerns about how much HURA will dedicate out of its coffers (because we’re not allowed to make or require an agreement), or whether or not eminent domain may be used related to these improvements (the 2009 Capital Development Plan implies that it can).
The second vote was to expand down Miles in order to include a large, undeveloped field at the northwest corner of Miles and Maple. Many people have an interest in turning this area into a park and keep an historical homestead. Apparently the current owners are offering favorable terms to the City to buy this land depending on whether or not the City can show due diligence in obtaining other funding sources.
In the council meeting, it was reported that the city has about a quarter of the negotiated price in reserve. Funds from HURA plus private donations may get us over the goal line. A lot of promises were made during deliberations on this acquisition, and I took it on faith they would be met with the interest in preserving at least a portion of this parcel as a park. My understanding is that if all parties interested in buying this land do not follow through on their respective promises, the deal falls through, and the land will be sold to developers. I voted yes despite no specific promise from HURA on how much it will contribute. I may rue the day I did this.
The last zone up for vote was a tract of land on the north side of Lancaster straddling SR95. This would have added to the Hayden Urban Renewal District the Golden Glow Espresso and the property across from the Lancaster Market between 95 and Warren Street. I voted no on this despite current mayor Alan Davis advocating in favor of it. Enough is enough.
HURA expires in 2029
HURA is due to expire at the end of 2029. We do not have the votes on Council to terminate it before its statutory expiration. It has about $5 million in the bank, and is forecasted to receive another $7 million before it expires.
As I understand, the current state statutes have been updated in such a way that it will be difficult to create an urban renewal agency that operates in the same way as the current HURA. I hope this is true. So, from my knothole, let’s use the money HURA generates to address legitimate concerns.
If after reading this, you still disagree with me, I want you to know that you have every right to express your anger, frustration, and disappointment in me. I accept that as part of the job. I don’t know if I’m doing the right thing if you’re not telling me.
Thomas Shafer
Hayden, Idaho
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