Council approves Adeo mixed-use neighborhood with conditions after extended public comment

The Meridian City Council on June 10 approved the Adeo Mixed-Use Neighborhood application (H-2024-0068), a 69.18-acre development east of North 10 Mile and McMillan Road, adopting zoning changes and a preliminary plat with conditions. The council voted 3-1 to approve the project.

The proposal rezones portions of the property to R-8 and R-15 for residential uses, and LO and CG for the commercial and office areas. The preliminary plat, as presented, includes approximately 270 residential lots, about 44 commercial lots, four office lots, 31 common lots, two common drives and one park. Staff and the applicant agreed to multiple conditions before the council vote; key conditions require a traffic-impact study (TIS) for the commercial portion before final plat or plan submittal, limits on some commercial access until ACHD approval, and construction sequencing for a new collector road.

City planning staff told council the collector road is intended to be a complete street with travel lanes, curb and gutter and a 10-foot multi-use path on the residential side; the developer agreed to build the primary portion of the collector early in the project. The city conditions require the rest of the collector and associated pedestrian connections and landscaping to be delivered before occupancy of buildings within phase 2. Staff also said that a requested write-in/write-out vehicle access to 10 Mile Road cannot be approved without the TIS and ACHD findings.

Public comment at a lengthy hearing expressed several recurring concerns: residents contended the project would increase traffic along 10 Mile and McMillan Roads; neighbors said a significant portion of an existing park used by the community would be reduced; several speakers raised concerns about school crowding (West Ada School District capacity concerns were cited); and a few residents questioned past HOA practices and control of park property by a prior developer.

City staff said part of the longstanding issue is that an earlier developer had constructed more park acreage than the original development agreement required. Planning staff and city legal counsel said the developer for the Adeo application will record a plat that establishes a 10.2-acre park parcel consistent with the original development agreement and that the park parcel will be transferred to the HOA. City staff mapped the existing improved park as about 13.3 acres and explained the action will return the park to the 10.2 acres specified by the earlier development agreement.

Applicant representatives said the project completes a portion of the local grid, provides pedestrian connectivity to nearby parks and includes neighborhood amenities such as play structures and open space; they told council they had negotiated final conditions with staff and supported conditions labeled 1g, 1p and 1u in the staff report. Ada County Highway District staff said existing TIS work covers the residential buildout but the commercial lots lack a TIS and that the commercial TIS will determine whether a traffic signal is warranted at 10 Mile and the new collector.

Councilwoman Little Roberts moved approval. The council recorded three ayes (Little Roberts, Overton and Whitlock) and one nay (Strader); one council member abstained from public comment during the hearing. The approval included the staff-recommended conditions requiring the updated TIS for the commercial portion, ACHD approval of additional driveway access, and sequencing language tying collector completion and landscape/pathway installation to phase occupancy. The applicant also committed to provide a written commitment to work with the existing HOA and to move forward with a stand-alone park plat to enable deed transfer to the homeowners association.