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Talent lays foundation for end of building ban By MEG LANDERS TALENT - Preparing for the lifting of a four-year building moratorium, City Planner Kevin Cronin is scheduling pre-application conferences with potential developers. The building moratorium has been in place since February 1997 and will be lifted once the Talent-Ashland-Phoenix water intertie project is complete. With the project 95 percent finished, Cronin said he estimates the moratorium will be lifted mid-January. Beginning Dec. 4, pre-application conferences will be available from 1 to 4 p.m. Tuesdays and Wednesdays. "Pre-application meetings are basically to get everybody on the same page as far as what the city's expectations are and what the developers' expectations are," he said. During the one-hour sessions, which cost $125, the Planning Department will discuss development goals, potential issues and neighborhood concerns with builders, whether they're designing single-family houses or subdivisions. Jack Latvala of Star Properties said that while he knows of a couple of parcels being developed, there have not been many builders champing at the bit waiting for the moratorium to be lifted. "I would have thought we would have had more (developers) by now," said Latvala. "As far as the little in-fill lots and the (lots for) one or two homes, I haven't seen anything become available," he said. Cronin said he anticipates some applications, however. "I do think there's going to be a balance of commercial and residential because we haven't had anything in the past four or five years." No new homes have been built in Talent since 1997, when the City Council adopted a construction moratorium because Talent lacked an adequate water supply. Completion of the TAP intertie project will connect Talent to the Medford Water Commission supply and provide a new, million-gallon reservoir. Talent's current water is drawn from Bear Creek and Wagner Creek. To make an appointment or for more information, contact Cronin at 535-7401. Information is also available at www.cityoftalent.org. Reach reporter Meg Landers at 776-4481 or e-mail [email protected] . Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.