Sawmill Cottages

The 15-acre parcel of land on the east side of the river between Bullion Street and the Bow Bridge (formerly known as “the old Board Ranch” or the “Caplow property”) had been one of WRLT’s acquisition priorities for a long time, because the property included an unofficial trail providing access along the river from Bullion Street to the Hailey Greenway.  In December 2021, a donor made a restricted gift that allowed WRLT to purchase the property under specific conditions that the disturbed portion of the property (the old sawmill site on the north half of the property) would be made available for community workforce housing, and the remainder of the property would be incorporated into the Hailey Greenway.

Why community workforce housing on this site?

The donor cared very much about conservation of open spaces and about the challenges that our local workforce faces with housing affordability.  The donor wanted to protect our natural resources while smartly growing housing options for our local workforce. Smartly growing housing options includes placing new development as close as possible to utility infrastructure, city services, and pedestrian access to downtown cores. The disturbed portion of this site is more ideal for housing than parcels further out canyons, etc., because it is directly adjacent to city services like water and sewer infrastructure, and closer to bus routes, schools, grocery stores, and other businesses.

What are the intentions in terms of protecting resources on-site? Early on, WRLT set certain sideboards for the development with the goal of protecting resources on-site. 

These included:

• Keep the development as close to existing infrastructure as possible;

• Avoid wetlands to the greatest extent possible;

• Locate buildings outside of the floodplain;

• Protect riparian habitat and public access to Draper Preserve by setting development at least100 feet from the river and preserving access routes.

A wetlands delineation was conducted, identifying wetlands along the tailrace slough that runs between the developable area and the homes to the east. In the absence of final updated FEMA maps, there were also extensive on-the-ground surveys conducted to run the updated FEMA floodplain model for the site to determine a building envelope that would remain outside of the 100-year floodplain, even with the updated model. Initially, it was estimated that approximately 8 acres of the 15-acre parcel would be retained by WRLT. In light of these additional studies, now over 9 acres of the 15-acre parcel will be retained for inclusion in Draper Preserve.

What did we hear from the community during early outreach?

In 2022, we held a number of listening sessions and individual meetings with neighbors.  The input we received has been summarized here:

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• Protect the wetlands and tailrace slough

•  A preference for single family homes, not apartment buildings

• The pocket neighborhood concept, with smaller units, was preferable

• Homeownership model would be ideal

• Preserve access for the China Gardens neighborhood to river

• Work force housing, not low income housing (preference for “the missing middle”)

• Avoid connecting the road through Walnut Street

Upcoming Public Processes

WRLT’s Annexation Application and Large Block Preliminary Plat Applications

WRLT will be submitting a Letter of Intent to Annex the parcel into the City of Hailey.  This will alert theCity Council to our upcoming Annexation Application for the 15-acre parcel.  Schedule allowing, we are planning for this item to be heard at the February 23, 2026, Hailey City Council meeting. 

Then, WRLT will prepare and eventually submit an Annexation Application and Large Block PlatPreliminary Plat Application.  The goal of the Large Block Preliminary Plat is to separate the area to bemade available for workforce housing development, and the parcel that will remain with WRLT as partof the preserve. Once the lot is annexed and split, WRLT will gift the area intended for workforcehousing to LEAP. Going forward, LEAP will apply for entitlements to develop the community workforcehousing in accordance with the guidelines outlined earlier.

The Annexation process will involve multiple Planning & Zoning Commission hearings as well as multiple City Council hearings, with opportunity for public comment.  City staff have estimated the Annexation process may last 6-8 months.  Agendas for P&Z and City Council meetings can be found at https://haileycityhall.org/public-meetings/. 

We also want to extend the invitation to schedule time to talk with us individually and ahead of these public meetings if you’d like to ask questions or would like to provide input ahead of those hearings.

LEAP’s Planned Unit Development Application

Upon approval of the Annexation and Large Block Preliminary Plat, WRLT will convey the developable portion to LEAP, and LEAP will move forward with applications related to the workforce housing component. These will likely include applications for a Planned Unit Development, Preliminary Plat (for the townhouse or cottage sub lots), Design Review and Final Plat.  All of these applications will be heard publicly before Hailey’s Planning & Zoning Commission and City Council. As a reminder, LEAP has agreed to the guidelines mentioned above.  So, the workforce housing plans that you will see with future applications will reflect the guidelines responding to the intent of the original gift and community feedback.

Getting together

We’ll be holding open office hours for people to drop by with questions Thursday, Feb 5th from 11am-6:30pm, and Friday, Feb 6 th from 1pm-6:30pm. Please feel free to drop by our office during those times and Amy will make herself available. If those times don’t work and you’d like to schedule another time to talk, please email us at info@woodriverlandtrust.org, or call our office at 208-788-3947.

If Amy is not immediately available, Erin at our front desk has access to her schedule and can find a time that works for you.