The future of a makeshift mountain is uncertain after the city of Coeur d’Alene considered how its urban renewal agency develops hillsides overlooking Atlas Park.

As part of a vote to transfer a triangle-shaped parcel of land to ignite cda, the Coeur d’Alene City Council heard about options engineers and developers are exploring as they consider the hillside colloquially known as Mt. Hink.

“What will Mt. Hink look like when ignite cda is done?” Phil Boyd, principal engineer for Welch Comer, brought before the council Tuesday night. “It’s not a great-looking thing, obviously, and ignite does not intend to leave it in its current condition.”

The hill, which has generated a following among local hikers looking for a more rigorous change of pace from the nearby Centennial Trail, is one of several resource assets ignite is evaluating. Boyd said that while Mt. Hink and its neighboring hills do deliver striking views, the land itself is a bit of an eyesore.

“One idea, the simplest idea, is to just go out there, move it around into a shape that looks slightly more pleasant than it is now, put a winding trail that goes to the top and cover it with dryland grass seed,” Boyd said.

While that makeover was among the first ideas proposed, Boyd said the agency’s recent experiences with soil resources — specifically, the soil LaRiviere Construction salvaged as its crews developed the Atlas Park project — gives the soil new opportunity to help the community.

“The one [idea] we’ve started to like better, because it generates revenue over time, is to process the materials into useable aggregates and topsoil,” Boyd said.

That plan is one engineers will likely explore, particularly after LaRiviere essentially gave ignite cda a free dry run on the possibility of re-using the soil for other projects.

The presentation came as the city voted to transfer a triangle-shaped parcel valued at more than $3 million in land sales back into ignite’s hands. The land transfer will give ignite cda more flexibility in its tax-drawing revenue, potentially expanding original models of 39 town houses and 24 single-family units to 30 town houses and 39 single-family homes, adding just over a projected $1.1 million in value.

The city acquired the triangle parcel in a land exchange with River’s Edge Development. The land was intended to be included in the Atlas Park project, but logistics prevented that incorporation into the park, which is technically already open to the public and will likely make its grand opening in the spring.

Mayor Steve Widmyer said the transfer would enable a quicker recovery of debt back into city coffers.

“In the cash flow model, this is going to help that situation to be paid back,” Widmyer said. “The addition of the triangle piece to the project brings more revenue to the table, which would enable the debt to be paid back faster.”

Mt. Hink and its neighboring pits, meanwhile, remain open to possibility, as the city and ignite are exploring all options, including grassing over the hill and surrounding areas, extracting usable dirt, or even using the area for public safety facilities, such as a new firehouse.

“It’s a beautiful view up there,” Boyd said. “You’re looking up over the river. It’s really a fantastic view. But there’s also a lot of resources sitting there - I don’t want to say being wasted, but probably not being used to their highest value.”