With access to its 557 acres on Rathdrum Mountain secured, the city of Rathdrum is seeking public input on how to lightly develop the site.

The city council at 6 tonight will discuss the bid process to hire a consultant to handle the public planning process and develop a plan for the property about a half-mile north of city limits.

The proposal is to receive all bids by April 2 and the city would choose a consultant by April 8.

"We are anticipating for this work to be in the $25,000 range," City Administrator Brett Boyer wrote in a memo to the council.

City officials have expressed a desire to create low-impact recreational and educational opportunities at the mountain site, but also believe public input should drive the development.

"We believe gathering information from the public up front is critical to the success of the overall (mountain) project," Boyer wrote.

In addition, Boyer is seeking an amount not to exceed $6,000 to hire the University of Idaho to perform a resident survey related to both the mountain property and the Department of Parks and Recreation plan update.

The consultant would have to sub-contract the survey work with another firm, Boyer said.

"With the desire to do a survey on the mountain, we can combine the Parks and Recreation survey with questions concerning the mountain and combine the two projects to save the city some money," Boyer said.

The consultant would be funded with dollars generated from last year's sale of an acre to Post Falls for a communication tower on the mountain. Funds from an ongoing selective timber harvest of the city-owned mountain site would fund the survey performed by UI.

The last time Rathdrum's property was harvested was 14 years ago. Adding new trees is part of the harvest process.

The city last spring gained access to its site after a nearly 20-year fight with adjacent landowners. The Post Falls Highway District validated Barrett Drive, formerly named Foster Road, as a county road, allowing the city to have access to its mountain site. Barrett leads to the city's property.

The site, which isn't open to the public yet, includes streams, giant cedar trees and dirt Forest Service roads. Some areas offer partial views of Rathdrum and the Rathdrum Prairie. Spring Creek on the mountain feeds into City Park year-round.

The property is not the area of the mountain near the top that was heavily logged and seen as bare from the Rathdrum Prairie.

* In other business, the council will consider an agreement between the city and Post Falls Highway District to rebuild and pave Lancaster Road between Highway 41 and Greensferry Road. The highway district would construct the roadway base, while the city would fund as much as $175,000 of the paving. The agencies collaborated on improving Lancaster between Meyer and Huetter roads in 2012.

A public hearing will also be held on Copper Basin Construction's proposed third addition of North Ranch at Corbin Crossing consisting of 47 single-family residential lots on 22 acres east of Railway Avenue and north of Majestic Avenue in the southeast part of the city.