New Saint Andrews College Moves Forward In Expanding Campus Downtown

Moscow City Council denies two appeals to Board of Adjustment’s decision

From the very unhappy Moscow-Pullman Daily News:

New Saint Andrews College officials, students and supporters can now move toward expanding the college’s downtown campus into the former Cadillac Jack’s building on North Main Street.

The Moscow City Council denied two appeals Monday night to the Moscow Board of Adjustment’s July 18 decision, which was to approve a conditional use permit for the college’s expansion.

The meeting was intense at times as Mayor Bill Lambert called two separate five-minute recesses to bring back order.

The first was during the public comment period when Tina Hilding, a Moscow resident and appellant to the board’s first CUP approval, voiced her displeasure with how she was treated during the appeal process. Lambert asked Hilding to stop speaking since she had started to discuss a matter on the council’s Monday night agenda, which is not allowed during the public comment period.

The long process started when the board approved the CUP on April 25 and approved a relevant criteria and standards document for the CUP May 1.

The city received five appeals to the decision and the City Council sustained one of the five June 5. The council remanded the decision, with instructions, to the board, which then approved the CUP again July 18 with some changes.

One of the appeals to the board’s latest decision came from Ian von Lindern and Margrit von Braun.

City Attorney Rod Hall said the pair’s appeal stated they did not receive notice of the public hearings related to the NSAC CUP. Hall said the city provided notice to the proper addresses, including the business of von Lindern and von Braun.

Hall said the two also claimed the city should have provided 14 days to appeal the board’s decision instead of 10. However, Hall said city code says to provide a 10-day appeal window.

He also said the two should have no legal standing to appeal the board’s July 18 decision since they did not first appeal the April 25 board decision, which was to approve the CUP.

“Otherwise, you’d have a process where people could appeal at any time, and then decisions would never ultimately be made,” Hall said.

The councilors unanimously denied both appeals Monday night.

Councilwoman Kathryn Bonzo was not present.

“I can’t see where this has legal standing,” Councilman Jim Boland said of the von Lindern and von Braun appeal. “If they received proper notice according to the rules and did not appeal originally, then they don’t have standing to appeal the remand decision.”

Ryanne Pilgeram, the successful appellant of the five original appellants, was the other appellant to the board’s July 18 decision. She claimed the board’s decision was not supported by substantial evidence, the decision was arbitrary and capricious and it deviated from city code.

“There’s enough information in here to show that it wasn’t arbitrary and capricious,” Hall said. “It was based upon the substantial evidence that is in the record.”

Hall said every procedure was handled appropriately by the board and the council.