Palmer’s council approves developer Connie Yoshimura’s new Cedar Park housing project

Palmer’s city council gave the final nod Tuesday night, April 12, for a major new housing development that will bring the first substantial new residential construction in years within the city limits.

New residents in Palmer will reinforce local businesses and city sales taxes.

The project is developer Connie Yoshimura’s Cedar Park subdivision, with the first phase involving development for 28 lots on which houses would be built. At full development the project will involve homes on 83 lots, according to documents filed with the city.

Work will likely proceed when the city issues final permits and approvals for utilities and other improvements, city manager John Moosey said.

More details were also given the council on Connie Yoshimura’s housing project. The tract involved is on 89 acres off Marsh Road on the Glenn Highway. Lots being offered are 30,000 square feet to 43,000 square feet and will be 125 feet wide, so that spacing between houses will be 70 feet to 120 feet.

Palmer badly needs new housing. The bulk of new residential building in the Mat-Su has been in areas outside the city. In 2020 there were 333 new homes built in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough but only seven in Palmer, according to the Multiple Listing Service.

The Tuesday meeting temporarily put on hold when councilman Brian Daniels suffered discomfort and had to leave the meeting. Moosey, the city manager, said he didn’t know the cause and no other information was available, but he said Daniels had suffered an apparent seizure a year ago when he fainted during a council meeting.

Tuesday’s incident may have been related to that condition, or medication related to stress.

“He didn’t look well at the start of the meeting,” Moosey said.

Daniels and fellow board members Sabrena Combs and Jill Valerius have been under severe attack recently, much of it highly personal, in a recall campaign that is now underway. The stress caused by the recall may have been a factor in aggravating any medical condition for Daniels.

The special recall election in Palmer is set for April 19.

A local conservative activist group mounted the recall after having been angered by concerns voiced by Daniels, Combs and Valerius on social justice issues raised in the killing of black men by police in the Lower 48 states.

The conservative group has appeared at every city council meeting, including Tuesday, to make inflammatory remarks about Daniels and Combs. One person made remarks Tuesday during the open Citizen Participation portion of the meeting relaying comments heard from others that were critical of Combs on moral grounds.

Graphic details of the comment prompted another council member to ask the city attorney, Sarah Heath, who was present, if it is possible to shut down inappropriate and accusatory comments during public participation parts of the council meeting.

Heath said this was legally difficult to do particularly when comments were directed at public officials like council members.

“Basically, people are free to say anything they want,” without threat of slander or libel action, she told the council.