RATHDRUM - It could be called the base camp for the climb to determine the future of the city of Rathdrum's slice of Rathdrum Mountain.

The city has launched a public input campaign to build a development plan for 557 acres it owns on the mountain about a half mile north of city limits.

A survey being conducted by the Parks and Recreation Commission will be mailed to residents this month. Stakeholder interviews with about 25 local organizations, groups and individuals will also be held this month.

"We believe gathering information from the public up front is critical to the success of the project," said Brett Boyer, city administrator.

Last year the city 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 yet open to the public, 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.

City officials have expressed a desire to create low-impact recreational and educational opportunities at the mountain site such as hiking, biking and picnicking, but said they believe public input should drive the development.

The Langdon Group, a subsidiary of JUB Engineers Inc., has been contracted by the city for $19,400 to shepherd the public involvement effort and provide a written report to the city that summarizes the findings. The Langdon Group will be meet with city staff throughout the public input process to ensure stakeholder perspectives are documented.

A public open house on the process will be held this summer on a date and site to be determined.

"The city will review comments collected from the stakeholder assessment, the survey and open house to determine what the next phase of the planning process will entail," a press release states.

A draft report on the input is expected to be delivered to the city council in August with the final report submitted in September.

Landmark Landscape Architects and the University of Idaho will collaborate with the Langdon Group during the process.

A UI professor and assistant have contracted with the city for $5,600 to perform a separate survey that will be used to update the city's Parks and Recreation Master Plan.

"We wanted to do a scientifically-valid survey for both the parks plan project and the Rathdrum Mountain project," Boyer said. "This allows us to combine them into one, saving time and money."

A select harvest of the mountain site is underway. Logging trucks will be rolling throughout the city this summer due to the harvest.

When completed, the harvest should not be noticeable from the city, according to city officials.

The contract with the Langdon Group is funded with dollars generated from last year's sale of an acre to Post Falls for a communication tower on the mountain. Funds from the timber harvest and parks and recreation impact fees generated from new growth will 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.

Funds from the harvest may also be used for improvements on the mountain property.

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

For more information, contact Brad Marshall at bmarshall@jub.com or 762-8787.