EAGLE, Idaho — Eagle City Council has delayed a final vote on a proposed joint fire training and public works facility near the Eagle Bike Park, giving staff more time to address questions and community concerns before the issue returns on Oct. 20.
The proposal would place a fire training tower, city shop space, and outdoor training areas on 7.4 acres of city-owned land adjacent to the Eagle Bike Park — representing about 3% of the roughly 200-acre park complex. After nearly 5 hours of public comment Tuesday night, Sept. 15, council members said they want more time to review questions about the location and possible changes to the project before taking a final vote.
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The council voted unanimously to continue both the conditional use permit and the design review application to Oct. 20.
Eagle Fire Chief Tyler Lewis said the facility is intended as a neighborhood training facility for Eagle Fire and close mutual aid partners — not a regional facility open to departments statewide. He said the fire district currently travels to Boise and Star to train, taking units out of service every time they leave the district.
City leaders say the fire district has spent years searching for affordable land within Eagle city limits. Public Works Director Eric Ziegenfus said the city evaluated all city-owned properties, worked with Ada County, Eagle Sewer District, Eagle Island State Park, and local real estate agents, and found no viable alternatives. Eagle does not have an industrial zone or an industrial park. The 7.4-acre parcel at the bike park was identified as the largest available city-owned land and the most cost-effective location based on proximity to parks and city operations. A previous site near the high school was in federal litigation. The current public works shop at the regional sports complex site is slated to become a parking lot as that park develops.
WATCH | Eagle neighbors speak out after vote delayed on proposed fire training facility
The city and fire district are partnering on the project to reduce taxpayer burden — combining classroom space, shop space, and training areas rather than building two separate facilities.
The parcel itself has historically been used as a material storage yard and compost pile for the bike park — not as active recreational space.
Lewis said the facility would be fully compliant with National Fire Protection Association standards. Burns would use only clean wood — pallets, hay, or straw — with no foam products. All runoff from the burn tower would be captured through valley gutters, run through grass, sand, and a grease trap separator, and then sent to the sewer plant for treatment. Lewis said he can guarantee smoke will not leave the property because the fire department controls when burns happen — if weather conditions do not permit safe burning, they do not burn.
The proposal has gone through multiple rounds of revision since its first hearing. Several waivers originally requested have been addressed, including the removal of chain link fencing in favor of decorative wood and tubular steel fencing, the elimination of exposed fasteners, and enhanced landscaping along the southern boundary — including a 7-foot earthen berm, a 6-foot privacy fence, and 23 trees. Remaining waivers still requiring council action include metal siding adjacent to the road, the use of shipping containers for the training tower, a height exception from 35 feet to 38.5 feet, landscaping screening at the trash enclosure, gravel parking, and street tree placement.
ACHD already has planned improvements in the area, including a signalized pedestrian crossing at Horseshoe Bend Road and Greenbrook Street, interim pathways on both sides of Horseshoe Bend Road between Hill and Floating Feather, and a roundabout at Horseshoe Bend Road and Floating Feather scheduled for design in 2027.
Neighbors who spoke against the proposal raised concerns about smoke, traffic, noise, safety near a recreational area, and the precedent of converting park land to another use. The Southwest Idaho Mountain Biking Association, representing 1,100 members, said it is not opposed to the facility itself but opposes the location, citing the character of the recreational area.
Eagle neighbor Avery Wilson, who has lived in the area since 2015, said the location felt wrong for a space where families gather.
"I just don't feel comfortable with them fighting fires right next to the kids and all the smoke," Wilson said.
Wilson said her family has already experienced the real consequences of wildfire in the area — including being dropped by their home insurance after a fire jumped Highway 55 and threatened their neighborhood. She said she hopes a community member with available land will step up so the fire department can train without putting a facility in a park where families bring children and dogs.
"I just really like to see someone in the community with a lot of property maybe donate some land so we can all stay safe, and they get their practice hours in, but it's not at a park where we bring our kids and our dogs," Wilson said.
Eagle neighbor Tony Rogers, who visited the bike park for the first time Wednesday, said the area already deals with serious wildfire smoke every summer and questioned why the training facility would add to that.
"This is a really beautiful recreational area where a lot of people come with their bikes, not just their bikes, but their dogs, their kids," Rogers said.
"It feels like a strange request," Wilson added.
Rogers said he supports what firefighters do but believes there is other land available.
"There's other room out here too," Rogers said.
RELATED | Eagle neighbors push back on proposed fire training and public works facility near Eagle Bike Park
Eagle neighbor Curtis King, who has lived in Eagle for 3 years, said he supports the project given how much the city has grown.
"We're kind of squeezed from fire department resources, so having an opportunity to expand on that would really protect us as Eagle citizens to make sure that we're ready in case of any sort of fire event," King said.
King said the amount of smoke from the training facility would be small compared to the wildfire smoke the valley already experiences each summer and called it inconsequential. He also said the 7 acres represents a small price to pay for community safety given the size of the overall park.
"If we have a small undertrained firefighting force in an expanding city, like that spells disaster," King said.
King said he hopes neighbors will consider the full picture before the council takes up the proposal again.
"I would just hope that people do their research, see how much this area has expanded, see how much commercial that's coming in, and think about the need for firefighters," King said.
Eagle City Council will take the proposal back up on Oct. 20 at their scheduled city council meeting.
