Meadow Lakes plan draws mixed reviews

Sept. 4, 2005

DARRELL L. BREESE\Frontiersman reporter

MEADOW LAKES - Large tracts of trees and meadows, unspoiled lakes and streams and peaceful cohabitation with nature attracted many of Meadow Lakes' 5,300 residents.

The area dubbed Meadow Lakes is located between Wasilla on the east and Houston and Big Lake on the west, and extends north to Baldy Mountain - the beginning of the Talkeetna Mountains - roughly three miles above the Little Susitna River.

A desire by residents to preserve their rural lifestyle led to the development of a comprehensive plan for future development. The plan has been accepted by the Meadow Lakes Community Council and awaits approval from the Mat-Su Borough.

The plan offers the community a way to guide the rapid growth taking place throughout their neighborhood, calling for evergreen buffers and large lots that will retain the rustic character of the community.

In order to retain open spaces and promote privacy, the plan calls for a minimum lot size of 2.5 acres for future residential development. New development will be required to have a vegetative buffer extending at least half the length of site boundaries.

The plan also identifies the area along the south side of the Parks Highway near the Pittman Road intersection as the best location for a multi-use town center, which would serve as a place to meet friends and neighbors, convene events and community meetings, and situate other commercial services like banks, a post office, grocery stores and restaurants.

Authors of the plan also want to retain the "natural feel" of the community with several undeveloped "green spaces" along the Parks Highway to separate developed areas, serving as a screen for commercial areas and preventing a sprawl of stores.

Other key issues include controlling impacts of uses like sand and gravel mining and maintaining large areas of open space.

While there is a consensus among the community for most of the plan's goals and policies, the establishment of a minimum lot size of 2.5 acres for new residential development has been a sore spot for both land owners and utilities.

Some residents like Homer Mayo, who homesteaded in the area back in 1959, are happy to see the large lot size requirement. Others, including several holders of large parcels, object.

Mayo likes the fact that the larger lots help preserve some of the privacy to which he has grown accustomed.

"When I homesteaded here in 1959 there was lots of space," Mayo said. "I've seen all the growth and it's mind-boggling. I support the larger lot sizes. With all the growth there will need to be new wells and septic systems installed. Smaller lot sizes might be detrimental to the water table. I'm all in favor of progress, but it needs to be done properly."

The Trust Land Office, which manages land on behalf of the Alaska Mental Health Trust Authority, believes the proposed lot size will stall any future development.

The Mental Health Trust owns nearly 3,000 acres in the northeast portion of Meadow Lakes.

"The 2.5-acre limit on residential development is too restrictive and prevents landowners from maximizing the use of their land," Alison Smith, senior resource manager with the Trust. "It makes it impossible to design economically feasible projects.

"The restriction is effectively a ban on new residential development," Smith said. "It makes building roads for a new subdivision in a very large lot development prohibitively expensive."

In addition to being frustrated by the limited lot size for residential development, Smith expressed concern over some of the Trust lands being considered as state-owned parcels, which are targets for recreational and open space development. Of particular concern are 1,900 acres in the Baldy Mountain area.

"The plan designates Trust land in the Mount Baldy area as either open space or recreation use," Smith said. "This is unacceptable since it removes the ability of the trust to generate revenues from the land. Doing so is, in effect, placing a zero value on our land and taking of the land."

Matanuska Electric Association also has concerns with the plan's requirement for future developments to have underground utilities.

"The main concern that MEA has is that the people of the Meadow Lakes area be aware that there is no free lunch," Michael Pauley, manager of government and corporate communications for MEA, said. "The standard requiring underground lines will have significant cost impacts on consumers of electric utility services. Installation of distribution lines underground is 50 percent more expensive than overhead installation. Thus, any consumer requiring an underground line would have to pay substantially more for the initial connection."

Pauley said that if approved, the plan would need to include allowances for natural obstacles.

He said large boulders and certain terrain could hinder installation and might lead to exorbitant cost and the possibility of residents not being able to afford the cost related to the initial connection.

Mayo understood the concern related to the higher cost of property and developing the community under the plan, but believed it is just what the area needs.

"I think the large lots will result in a nice community for everyone," Mayo said. "The area is still growing and the plan sets forth a plan for that growth that is well suited for the area."

The plan has been approved by the Meadow Lakes Community Council and awaits Assembly approval.

Initially the plan was slated for consideration during Tuesday's meeting, but was pulled because of a last-minute appeal.

The appeal was denied and the plan is expected to be back before the assembly in October.

Contact Darrell L. Breese at 352-2267 or at darrell.breese@

frontiersman.com.