Cheney native and former professional football player Steve Emtman says site work is expected to start next spring on the first phase of what could become a 255-acre mixed-use development there with 1,300 housing units.


The first phase of the development, to be called Terra Vista, is planned to include about 520 living units on roughly 94 acres located in southeast Cheney and bordered by Union Pacific Railroad tracks to the northwest, Cheney-Plaza Road to the west, and Cheney-Spangle Road to the east, says Emtman.


Emtman is planning the project through his Spokane-based company, Defender Developments LLC. Eventually, Terra Vista also is expected to include an office complex and a wetland park.


Emtman says hes not ready to release an estimated cost or value for the development, which would be completed over the next 15 years, he says. He says hes talking with several builders, whom he declines to name, who are interested in buying land within the development for projects.


As part of the first phase of the project, a mixture of roughly 80 townhouses and cottages would be built on the property that runs just east of the railroad tracks, he says. Those dwellings would range in size from 1,000 square feet of floor space to 1,500 square feet, he says.


East of those homes, a complex would be built with roughly 48,000 square feet of floor space for offices and a community educational center. South of that complex, roughly 220 units targeted at Eastern Washington University students would be constructed in multifamily housing. Currently, about 20 percent of EWUs students live on campus, and Emtman says he hopes the new housing would result in more students living in Cheney, rather than in surrounding communities. He also hopes to attract tenants to the office park that would employ those students.


Youve got to sell what you have, and our best resource is EWU, Emtman says. If more students could work here, theyd live here, too.


The first phase also is to include non-apartment style, non-student multifamily structures with a total of 70 units and roughly 150 single-family homes, varying in size, he says. All of those units would be intended for permanent residents, rather than students. A wetland lies at the center of the planned first phase of the development, and Emtman says hes working with Bend, Ore.-based GeoEngineers Inc.s office here to improve and expand that into a park covering 10 acres.


Emtman says he wants Terra Vista to have a mixture of housing to attract families and older adults, as well as EWU students. He declines to disclose estimated prices for the units, but says prices will hit both the low and high ends of the market.


We want to provide diversified options for the whole Cheney market, and we want to make sure its a well-planned community, he says.


With the exception of the student housing, construction of the living units in the first phase is expected to start next summer and would take up to 10 years to complete, he says. The student housing portion of the project likely will start in 2008.


Emtman and several other landowners own the more than 255 acres needed for the overall project, but most of that land, except for the property where the first phase would be located, is outside the city limits of Cheney, Emtman says. Emtman plans to submit an application to the Spokane County Commission to expand Cheneys urban growth area. He says if that application is approved, he will file a petition with the Spokane County Boundary Review Board for the city to annex the land and extend public services to it.


The portion of land that hasnt been annexed yet would include a mixture of single-family and multifamily units, he says. At the southeast corner of the property, Emtman hopes to develop an equestrian-themed neighborhood, which would have lots up to one acre in size, as well as boarding areas for horses.


The Columbia Plateau Trail runs through that portion of the planned development, so residents in Terra Vista would have access to that trail, he says. Terra Vista also is located just northwest of Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge, and Emtman says he hopes eventually to work with property owners, the city of Cheney, and the Washington state Parks and Recreation Commission to connect the refuge to the development through a trail system.


Were designing Terra Vista for those who want an active lifestyle, Emtman says. We also want to preserve the small-town atmosphere and rural setting that makes Cheney what it is.


Separately, Emtman says he plans to renovate three buildings in downtown Cheney that he has bought recently, and is looking for retail tenants. Emtman says hes investing in the downtown area as a way to draw more visitors into the heart of Cheney, rather than have visitors shop at commercial centers that have risen on the outskirts of town.


Were trying to bring more small businesses to Cheney, and its important to build up the downtown and get more money spent there, he says.


Emtman currently lives in Spokane Valley, Wash., but plans to move to one of the buildings hes renovating in downtown Cheney. Emtman was a defensive tackle for the University of Washington and was the No. 1 pick in the National Football League draft in 1992. Injuries ended his career in 1997.


Contact Emily Brandler at (509) 344-1265 or via e-mail at emilyb@spokanejournal.com.