EAGLE, Idaho — This article originally appeared in the Idaho Press.
Growing communities like Eagle aren’t just growing in population, they’re growing in grapes, too.
Local grape farmer Steve Bruneel will be creating a winery and vineyard on 39 acres of his property on 4952 N Gooder John Lane, about half a mile west of Linder Road.
On Tuesday, June 11, Eagle City Council approved his request to rezone the land and create that vineyard, although not exactly the way Bruneel initially wanted it.
During the course of the council meeting, which lasted over four hours, several members of the public testified against the vineyard being approved, specifically noting concerns about events that could be held at the vineyard and the noise, ruckus and traffic that could come with them.
According to Tamara Thompson, representing the applicant through The Land Group firm, Bruneel Vineyards will grow and process its own grapes on site. Around 3,200 square feet of Bruneel’s 6,900-square-foot house will be transformed into a tasting room, Thompson said. The main floor will include a kitchen, restrooms and an indoor tasting space and the top floor will become a space for offices and storage.
The vineyards will also include an outdoor patio area for folks to enjoy their drinks outside, Thompson said.
The Ada County Highway District has been consulted about the access points and roads near the vineyard, Thompson said, and there are no concerns about traffic or vehicular access. If speed bumps are needed, Bruneel will pay for them, Thompson said.
Bruneel’s vision for the vineyard was to initially have event facilities along with tasting rooms, wine crushing facilities and a winery. Most of the concerns were centered around the events center, not the actual winery or vineyard.
“Fears aren’t facts,” Thompson said. “People’s brains just go to the worst-case scenario.”
Among the neighbors who came to oppose the approval of the new vineyard was Bret Garrigan, who lives on nearby Homer Road.
“We have a special event center application for conditional use permit masquerading as a winery,” Garrigan said during an interview with the Idaho Press. “We just don’t want to have 250 people at an event, drinking lots of alcohol, impacting our lifestyles in a residential area that we never bargained to have a commercial enterprise in.”
Garrigan has lived in the area for 34 years.
“We like wineries too. We just don’t think you need to have a special event center,” Garrigan said. “Our quality of life is just going to be changed drastically ... this is a classic ‘not in my backyard.’”
Thompson addressed concerns during a portion of the city council meeting, suggesting that folks like Garrigan were confused at the amount of noise or traffic that the vineyard would really bring to the area.
“This isn’t Bronco Stadium,” Thompson said. “This is a small backyard that they’re looking at having an occasional wedding because the views are amazing and they want to share that with the community instead of keeping it to themselves.”
Ultimately, the council voted to approve Bruneel’s vineyard and winery but denied the event facility portion of his request.
The council’s approval comes with the understanding that all activities at the vineyard will take place no closer than 100 feet from residents and the applicant will pay for vehicular access to the winery and tasting room, providing its hours of operation are between 10 a.m. and 10 p.m.
According to Thompson, the vineyard will be open seven days a week, from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday-Thursday and from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.
The council also instructed Bruneel to conduct a sound study through an acoustic engineer. Sound coming from the vineyard cannot exceed 65 decibels. A “normal conversation,” washing machine, dishwasher, hair dryer and vacuum cleaner are among the noises that could reach 65 decibels, according to National Institutes of Health.
Regardless, it will be several years before the vineyard is up and running, Thompson said, because the wine grapes have just been planted this year. It’s unclear what the actual timeline of the vineyard is.
This article originally appeared in the Idaho Press, read more on IdahoPress.com.
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