New Saint Andrews denied expansion request

MOSCOW - For the second time, Moscow residents and business owners have appealed the expansion of New Saint Andrews College in downtown Moscow.

New Saint Andrews is looking to expand its campus into the building that recently housed CJ's Nightclub - aka Cadillac Jack's - on the 100 block of North Main Street. The former nightclub would be converted into a music conservatory with five additional classrooms and a 680-seat auditorium.

The Board of Adjustment has twice approved a conditional-use permit for the expansion, but the decision has been appealed by residents to the Moscow City Council.

The two appeals received Monday argue that parking surveys conducted by the city in the summer months don't provide an accurate representation of parking in downtown throughout the year; the city's parking counts were inaccurate; the city did not examine how business owners would be affected; and businesses were not informed of public hearings held on the matter.

The board first approved the expansion in April, but five residents appealed the decision.

The council sent the matter back to the Board of Adjustment in July and asked them to take a deeper look into parking impacts from the college's expansion in downtown Moscow during the lunch hour.

When it came back to the board few aspects of the permit were changed. The only difference was that the permit passed most recently required 47 spaces to be constructed within a quarter-mile of the CJ's property, as opposed to the half-mile condition the board initially required in April.

Based on false data in the survey and the unknown effects the decision may have on businesses, Ian von Lindern, his wife, Margrit von Braun, and the other appellant, Ryanne Pilgeram, are requesting the city council deny the conditional-use permit or remand it back to the board and develop appropriate data, then hear public comment.

"The information is not there for them to make a decision of this magnitude; they did quite a poor survey," said Ian von Lindern, owner of TerraGraphics Environmental Engineering.

Von Lindern, whose business is located about 600 feet from the old nightclub, said now that the board has narrowed the scope of where NSA can construct off-street parking spaces to a quarter-mile, competition for parking will increase for his employees and clients if NSA is expanded.

He said his business rests right outside central business district lines, which requires him to provide parking in addition to public parking.

"We're at a disadvantage," he said.

Von Lindern said he would like to see the city complete a new parking survey that is accurate; both appeals highlight errors in parking counts on eight of the 21 blocks where the city surveyed parking.

Von Lindern said he's owned the business in downtown Moscow for 33 years and doesn't believe the city has examined parking impacts in downtown since the early 1990s.

He said he wasn't notified about the public hearing by the city, although the city maintains they notified him.

"We will look further into why that happened," Von Lindern said.

Moscow Planning Manager Mike Ray said it's now up to the city council to review the appeal and determine if the matter should be sent back to the board.

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Babcock may be contacted at jbabcock@lmtribune.com or at (208) 848-2275.