Where the approval stands
July 14, 2026
Planning and Zoning approved the plat, 4-0
August 31, 2026
City Council held a new hearing and approved it with 32 conditions, 5-1
From the hearing recording. The signed order controls.
Still open
Final plat, construction plans, and the highway district's approach permit for Access A
Six issues in the traffic study
A page-by-page check of the CivTech submittal found six errors that should be corrected before the study's conclusions are relied on. Each one cites the TIA page it rests on.
Data-entry error in the existing AM count
At Huetter and Mullan, the AM southbound through volume was entered as 33. The count is 442 (TIA p. 49 vs p. 63). Existing year only: the 2030 and 2035 models use the correct count.
Median storage assumed in 2035
The 2035 model gives Huetter and Mullan one vehicle of median storage (TIA p. 161). No median exists today, and no document says who builds it.
Table 3 prints the equations incorrectly
The single-family equation lacks "ln" on the left side (TIA p. 21). Appendix D has it right (p. 80), and the totals match the correct equation.
Appendix D: ln(T) = 0.92 ln(284) + 2.68
Reported total: 2,636 trips/day
Internal school trips do not balance
The AM peak counts 25 school-bound internal trips but only 7 home-to-school trips, and 21 school-to-home trips against 3 (TIA p. 81).
350-ft storage cap with no cited source
Table 8 caps recommended turn-lane storage at 350 ft and gives no source (TIA p. 36). At Huetter and Seltice the project adds no traffic to this movement.
25-mph speed in the sight-distance check
Access A was checked with a stop-control worksheet at 25 mph, the stated roundabout entry speed (TIA p. 187). Huetter is posted 45 mph.
Huetter Road: one access is proposed
The TIA shows one access to Huetter Road: Access A, a roundabout at Halide Avenue (Figure 4, p. 20). The frontage north of it is labeled "Future Phase of Coeur Terre" and "Not Part of Coeur Terre." Drawn to scale, south to north:
The hatched length is the frontage marked for a future phase. No access is proposed there. If one is proposed later, it needs a Post Falls Highway District approach permit and must meet the adopted minimum spacing of 330 ft between approaches on major collectors (AHD Standards § 209.03).
Huetter and Mullan in 2035
Delay for drivers leaving Mullan Avenue in the 2035 PM peak, with and without the assumed median storage.
"Without median" values are the review's estimate from the TIA's own worksheet capacities.
The question: the developer must build a northbound left-turn lane here (TIA Table 10; Council condition 32). Will it include the median storage the 2035 model assumes?
If a roundabout were studied at Mullan
The TIA did not analyze one. In its 2035 PM forecast, 61% of traffic at Huetter and Mullan is northbound. A single-lane northbound entry would run at:
The white line is 0.85, the planning limit the TIA itself uses (p. 19). Both values are the review's estimate from the TIA's volumes.
A roundabout here should be sized by a licensed engineer under current guidance.
Turn-lane storage: computed vs recommended
For three turn lanes, the traffic study computes one storage length and recommends a shorter one. Each pair of bars compares the two.
Key
Huetter and Seltice, southbound left (project's share of traffic: 0%)
Atlas and Hanley, eastbound right (project's share: 4%)
Atlas and Kathleen, westbound right (project's share: 0%)
Because the project's share of these movements is small, the TIA treats them as system improvements funded by impact fees.
Sight distance at Access A
What the TIA's stop-control worksheet needs at each speed, against the 390 ft the TIA estimated from satellite imagery.
Needed at 25 mph (TIA worksheet, p. 187)
Available (TIA estimate, p. 37)
Needed at 45 mph, the posted speed
At 45 mph, 390 ft is about 1.6 seconds less than the 7.5-second gap the method assumes. A roundabout has its own sight-distance method; the request is to use it at actual approach speeds, with a field survey.
East side: Appaloosa, Nez Perce and Atlas
Where the TIA sends site traffic (Figure 5, p. 23)
The red segment is Appaloosa Road (13%). Half of site trips go east through Indian Meadows.
Traffic calming is in the agreement
Development Agreement § 4.3 requires the two connections to be built with traffic calming that discourages speeding and through traffic. The Planning Commission's two added calming and signal conditions were not carried into the Council's approval.
Atlas Road timing gap
The TIA analyzes Atlas as three lanes in 2030. The City schedules the widening for 2031, with design starting in 2029. The two-lane condition in 2030 is not analyzed.
Right-turn lanes on Atlas
The TIA says the ITD right-turn lane criteria are met at Nez Perce and Appaloosa "but not recommended with this phase" because the intersections operate at LOS D or better (p. 30). Its appendix has no plotted worksheet to check.
Risk ledger (6 of 12 risks)
| Risk ID | Issue | Priority | Request |
|---|---|---|---|
| R-01 | Existing AM count entered as 33, not 442 | MEDIUM | Correct the worksheet and the existing-conditions table. |
| R-02 | 2035 median storage at Huetter and Mullan | HIGH | Show the storage on the turn-lane plans, or rerun without it and study positive control. |
| R-06 | Half of site trips routed east | HIGH | Traffic calming under Development Agreement § 4.3. |
| R-09 | Atlas three-lane assumption in 2030 | HIGH | Analyze the two-lane condition for 2030. |
| R-10 | 350-ft storage cap without a source | MEDIUM | Cite the source or remove the cap. |
| R-11 | Sight distance at Access A | HIGH | Use the roundabout method at approach speeds, with a field survey. |
The full ledger of 12 risks is in the report, section 7.
Recommended conditions
Requests to the City and the Post Falls Highway District for the steps still open. Numbers match the report, section 8.
1. Correct the traffic study
Fix the existing AM entry, state who builds the 2035 median storage, cite or remove the 350-ft cap, and reprint Table 3.
2. Highway district approach permit
A PFHD approach permit for Access A before construction (PFHD Ordinance 2019-01; Development Agreement § 4.2.4).
3 and 4. Huetter and Mullan; future frontage
Confirm the median storage on the left-turn lane plans or study positive control. Deny any later frontage access that does not meet the 330-ft spacing standard.
5. Atlas Road
Analyze the two-lane condition for 2030 and provide plotted right-turn warrant worksheets for Nez Perce and Appaloosa.
6 and 9. Calming and walking routes
Traffic calming on Appaloosa and Nez Perce under Development Agreement § 4.3, and the off-site walking gaps on the school routes closed as best practice.
10. Corridor simulation
A microsimulation of the roughly 3,700-ft segment from Seltice Way to Mullan Avenue that includes the school's morning peak.