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PEOPLE compiled by

Susan Drinkard

watching

“What’s the best or worst purchase you ever made?”

“It was a 2005 300C Chrysler vehicle. It was in the shop every 45 days.

It was the worst car.”

Lorie M. Tax accountant Coeur d’Alene

“The best purchase is any lunch or dinner at Dish. I like the burger with the special sauce we make in-house and for dinner I fancy the porker ribeye.”

Garrett Chandler General manager at Dish Sagle

“We bought a 3-D Samsung 60-inch and I love it. We’ve had it 6 years. It turns everything into HD We got it at Best Buy in California.”

Tina Rainey Caregiver Sandpoint “It was probably a hat I got in Mexico.

It was $45 and it ripped in two days.”

Cody M. Fifth grade Sandpoint

“Rock-climbing gear. Besides getting me outside, rock climbing has taken me to different parts of the country and provided many adventures.”

Lynn Marshall Clinical director at Boulder Creek Academy Sandpoint

DEAR READERS,

Here’s my words for this week: Be kind.

Life is so short. Why are we wasting so much time being angry and unproductive?

Why are we always so quick to judge and so slow to forgive? Why can’t we all see each other as fellow humans instead of adversaries?

I lost a friend from high school last week, and I remember the last time I saw him.

We were in the post office, passing one another. He gave me a big smile and said hello and asked how everything was going. A week later, he was gone from this earth.

After he passed away, it reminded me that when we see someone we love, there’s no guarantee that we’ll see them again.

Abraham Lincoln said it best: “We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection.

The mystic chords of memory will swell when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature.” Let’s all be better humans right now.

– Ben Olson, publisher

READER 111 Cedar Street, Suite 9 Sandpoint, ID 83864 (208)265-9724

www.sandpointreader.com Publisher: Ben Olson ben@sandpointreader.com Editorial: Zach Hagadone (Editor) zach@sandpointreader.com Lyndsie Kiebert (News Editor) lyndsie@sandpointreader.com Cameron Rasmusson (emeritus) John Reuter (emeritus) Advertising: Jodi Berge Jodi@sandpointreader.com Contributing Artists: Bill Mitchell (cover), Ben Olson, U.S. Navy, Racheal Baker, Bill Borders, Susan Drinkard, Ricci Witte, Architecture 311.5, Bonner County History Museum.

Contributing Writers: Zach Hagadone, Ben Olson, Lyndsie Kiebert, Lorraine H. Marie, Emily Erickson, Brenden Bobby, Shelby Rognstad, Raphael Barta, Scott Taylor.

Submit stories to: stories@sandpointreader.com Printed weekly at: Tribune Publishing Co. Lewiston, ID Subscription Price: $115 per year Web Content: Keokee The Sandpoint Reader is a weekly publication owned and operated by Ben Olson and Keokee. It is devoted to the arts, entertainment, politics and lifestyle in and around Sandpoint, Idaho.

We hope to provide a quality alternative by offering honest, in-depth reporting that reflects the intelligence and interests of our diverse and growing community.

The Reader is printed on recycled paper using soy-based ink. Leftover copies are collected and recycled weekly, or burned in massive bonfires to appease the gods of journalism. Free to all, limit two per person.

Sandpoint Reader letter policy: The Sandpoint Reader welcomes letters to the editor on all topics.

Requirements: –No more than 300 words –Letters may not contain excessive profanity or libelous material. Please elevate the discussion.

Letters will be edited to comply with the above requirements. Opinions expressed in these pages are those of the writers, not necessarily the publishers.

Email letters to: letters@sandpointreader.com Check us out on the web at: www.sandpointreader.com Like us on Facebook.

About the Cover

Bill Mitchell drew this week’s cover. Bill is a local who has drawn syndicated political cartoons for 25 years, ending with a stint on CNN.com. You can find more of his work on his Instagram @billmitchellart.

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NEWS

Ordinance giving mayor power to mandate masks fails on 4-2 vote

By Zach Hagadone Reader Staff Shouts and cheers of celebration could be heard from outside Council Chambers as news spread that the Sandpoint City Council voted down a proposed ordinance Aug. 19 that would have granted Mayor Shelby Rognstad emergency powers to mandate the wearing of face coverings within city limits.

Introduced for the second time

by Councilwoman Deb Ruehle, the ordinance drew “no” votes from Council President Shannon Williamson and Councilmen Joel Aispuro, John Darling and Andy Groat. Councilwomen Ruehle and Kate McAlister voted in favor, both citing input from constituents, a majority of whom the latter said expressed to her in recent days that they supported requiring face coverings in public places.

“It’s really sad that it’s become such a divisive issue in our community,” McAlister said, noting that “Councilwoman Ruehle is being bullied because she’s worried about your health.”

The passion with which the issue has been taken up by the community has been front and center for weeks. The city of Sandpoint solicited online comment

on the issue, garnering 883 total comments — 413 in favor and 470 against. Broken down between city and county, the former responded 102-81 in favor and the later 9772 against. The remainder of the respondents did not indicate their community of residence or could not otherwise be confirmed, breaking down 292-239 against.

“Never before have we seen such an overwhelming response from the public on any issue, ever,” Rognstad said.

Owing to the flood of written responses, the Council did not take verbal testimony on the proposed ordinance, but plenty of discussion took place on the dais.

For Councilmen Groat and Aispuro, the issue came down to self governance.

“It sounds like our community has done a great job with what we’re currently doing now,” said Groat, referring to a COVID-19 update offered earlier in the meeting by Don Duffy, who serves as Public Health Services Administrator for the Panhandle Health District.

Duffy told the Council that Bonner County’s COVID-19 numbers in the past two weeks give reason for cautious optimism. The county currently has 21 active cas-

es with fewer than 2% hospitalized — the rate per 100,000 population over a seven-day average being about 4.1, compared to 17.8 in Kootenai County.

“That’s a very low number and what a marvelous blessing,” Duffy said.

While Duffy made it clear that mask wearing, along with social distancing, frequent hand washing and self isolating when sick, has been proven effective at dramatically reducing the spread of COVID-19, he underscored that the mask mandate in Kootenai County came down from PHD because that community’s number of cases was increasing rapidly and far greater than those found in Bonner County.

“There’s a lot of good work happening in this community,” specifically at Bonner General Hospital, which he singled out for praise in “leading the charge” early on to help slow the virus.

“We’re a very capable community,” said Aispuro, later adding, “If you’re willing to go out you’re taking a risk whether you wear a mask or not.”

Ruehle last broached the idea of a mask mandate in July, but that proposal failed for lack of a second. Fellow council mem-

bers asked that she return with additional data — which she did, along with a formal ordinance that suggested noncompliance would carry a $300 misdemeanor fine and up to six months in jail. When the Council balked at the severity of those penalties — “That’s excessive,” McAlister said — Ruehle said she was willing to amend the ordinance to include only the $300 fine, but added that the proposed enforcement came from health district guidance.

“We don’t need to reinvent the wheel, we just need to make it work for us,” she said.

Sandpoint Police Chief Corey Coon testified to his officers’ ability to enforce such a mandate, calling it “pretty challenging.”

“There’s some legitimate concerns legally when we stop and talk with somebody [about breaking a law],” he said. “The educational piece is something we know we can do pretty effectively.”

Rognstad suggested a “middle path,” with a mask mandate that serves to “state our values and our respect for public health” while looking for an enforcement structure focused “entirely on education.”

“I don’t think that we want to make ourselves a COVID tourist

Bonner County prepares to adopt 2021 budget

By Lyndsie Kiebert Reader Staff

The sum of budgeted expenditures between the FY2020 and FY2021 Bonner County budgets are remaining largely the same — $64.2 million and $64 million, respectively — as the county prepares to adopt a budget for the coming year during public hearings on Wednesday, Aug. 26.

The county will not increase property taxes the allotted annual 3% for the third year in a row, but will take taxes on new construction. Additionally, Bonner County Clerk Mike Rosedale told the Reader that the commissioners have decided to waive this year’s foregone taxes, meaning that future boards will not be able to use the 3% tax increase not implemented for 2021.

“Foregone is the amount of money … that we are eligible to increase our taxes by, but don’t. We can save up that ‘potential’ tax amount over time, which could become a very large amount,” Rosedale said. “Our commissioners wanted to limit the potential liability of 4 /

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our county taxpayers and waive the 3% from what we could have used this year. Thus, our foregone will remain the same overall from last year, and not grow larger. The exposure to future boards using the foregone is now kept in check, as this year’s 3% will forever be gone.”

According to Rosedale, “[COVID-19] has reinforced Bonner County’s desire to not increase taxes again.” He said that while some revenue streams have decreased, others have stayed consistent and some — such as the share of tax receipts — have increased.

“In all we’re very aware of everyone’s financial stress and are trying to make sure Bonner County does not add to their stress, which is why we’re not raising taxes, even for [cost-of-living adjustments],” he said. “Even as we publish this budget, we are very aware that things could change and will respond appropriately if revenues drop materially.”

While salaries were the talk of the county during last year’s budget

season, such drastic increases aren’t apparent in the proposed 2021 budget. Human Resources Director Cindy Binkerd said the county engaged a third-party consulting agency, AmeriBen, in 2020 to gauge how county wages and benefits stacked up against the outside market. AmeriBen determined that Bonner County was “lagging behind by an average of approximately 2%” across departments — a difference made up when commissioners approved a 3% merit raise for all county employees in 2021.

Binkerd also noted that county law enforcement will see “market adjustments” in the coming year, and “nothing has changed with the elected officials’ salaries” — though they will receive the 3% proposed merit raise.

The most notable jump in funding for FY2021 appears in the Justice Fund, which has increased by more than $3 million since 2019.

Rosedale said that substantial increase is due to “small annual wages increases,” “a concerted effort”

site,” he said, referring back to earlier comments from Aispuro that many visitors this summer have flocked to Sandpoint specifically because it has not mandated face coverings, as some surrounding communities have.

“In the short term that might be good for business, but in the long term that exposes us to greater risk,” Rognstad said.

While Ruehle likened the $300 fine for noncompliance to penalties such as those meted out for speeding, seatbelt violations and texting while driving — “I would encourage strong education and that these fines would be used at officers’ discretion,” she said — her proposed amendment failed for lack of a second.

Saying “I’m just not there” when it comes to giving the mayor authority to impose a mask mandate, Williamson emphasized that, “I wear a mask. I have my family wear a mask. I encourage everybody I know to wear a mask. But I’ve also heard and spoken to many people … about the science that you may or may not believe in and I can talk until I’m blue in the face and you probably won’t wear a mask.

“Let’s just be kind. Don’t bully anybody for either not wearing a mask or wearing a mask,” she said.

Public hearings set for Aug. 26

to retain Bonner County Sheriff’s Office employees with market-competitive salaries, “major technology implementations” for BCSO and the Public Defender’s office, increased staffing requirements for the Public Defender and court, as well as a new District Court judge.

“And lastly, we can’t control who brings suits against us, which we must defend to save from having to pay otherwise much higher costs,” Rosedale said.

The county has also played the role of plaintiff throughout 2020, as its suit against the city of Sandpoint regarding The Festival at Sandpoint gun ban — filed in September 2019 — had accrued $117,631 in legal fees as of Aug. 6.

The county is also preparing to tap $800,000 in Statutory Reserve funds in FY2021, split evenly between the General and Justice funds. Rosedale said that money is not allocated toward any planned expenditure, but is intended as an “emergency fund.”

“The way Idaho Code is set up, if we don’t have it budgeted it is very difficult to increase the budget if an emergency does pop up, with a few exceptions,” he said. “We budget this so that if there is a problem, we can deal with it more easily.”

The county spent Statutory Reserve funds in 2020 — about $752,000 between the General and Justice funds — but not in 2018 or 2019.

Bonner County EMS, which budgets separately from all other departments, has allocated $4.1 million for FY2021, which is just over the estimated $3.9 million spent in 2020.

Public hearings regarding the proposed budgets are scheduled for 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 26 in the first floor conference room at the Bonner County Administration Building, 1500 Highway 2 in Sandpoint. In-person attendance is allowed, and each hearing will also be live streamed on Zoom. Information needed to join via Zoom will be published prior to the hearings on bonnercountyid.gov.

NEWS

Gov. Little announces special session for Aug. 24

By Zach Hagadone Reader Staff

Idaho Gov. Brad Little played coy with callers at an AARP Idaho tele-town hall Aug. 18 when he said legislative leaders “haven’t made that determination yet” regarding a special session of the Legislature to address COVID-19, but pulled a switcheroo on Aug. 19 when his office issued a proclamation setting the date for such a session to convene on Monday, Aug. 24.

Only three special sessions have been called in Idaho since 2000, but the extraordinary stresses and issues brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic have made one necessary.

“Special legislative sessions by their very nature are intended to deal with time sensitive issues that require immediate legislative action and cannot wait until the general session in January,” Little stated in the announcement.

Those “time sensitive issues” are the smooth running of the November general election amid the ongoing pandemic and changes to civil liability rules that would provide a range of legal protections for various public and private entities during a declared emergency.

Lawmakers will consider a new section to Idaho elections code establishing “alternative procedures for Election Day voting” in the form of so-called “vote centers.”

The proposed legislation enables counties to establish special locations that are equipped to issue appropriate ballots, record voters’ information and receive fulfilled ballots — much like a traditional polling place, however, “vote centers” would be able to serve eligible voters from any precinct in the county.

To establish a vote center,

counties must provide at least one center in each legislative district in the county, one center for every 15,000 registered voters and at least one center within 24 miles of every registered voter who is not located within a mail ballot precinct.

Counties must notify the secretary of state at least 30 days prior to implementing a vote center. As with traditional polling places, no electioneering would be allowed.

In addition, a handful of amendments to elections code are proposed, including a provision that absentee ballots requested by uniformed and overseas voters will be sent no later than 45 days before an election and no later than 30 days for all other valid absentee voters — provided those requests are received at least 45 days and 30 days, respectively, prior to the election.

Also, absentee ballots will be opened and scanned beginning seven days prior to Election Day, with ballots secured in the clerk’s office. No results for absentee ballots will be tabulated until polls close.

Both the new code section and amendments are set to

expire on Dec. 31 and apply to any elections run prior to that date.

“Consistently I’ve said, ‘We want to make sure that the people that vote feel safe going to the polling stations; how we do our absentee voting in Idaho … and that will be the issue,” Little said Aug. 18.

The civil liability reform proposal has proved stickier for legislators to grapple with.

After much procedural wrangling — which Blanchard Republican Rep. Heather Scott called a “cluster” on Aug. 17, according to Boise State Public Radio — lawmakers will consider a new section of Idaho Code that would provide legal immunity for “a person” (defined as, though not limited to, an individual, business, organization or government entity) from “good faith” actions, or the lack thereof, related to addressing or mitigating a specifically “coronavirus-related pandemic or epidemic.”

That immunity would not apply if actions or omissions “constitute an intentional tort or willful or reckless misconduct,” or if a person “fails to make a good faith effort to comply with

a statute, rule or lawful order of a government entity in effect at the time.”

That said, noncompliance with guidelines or recommendations alone can’t be used to establish civil liability — provisions in the section are only applicable if they are “the proximate cause of injury to another.”

The proposed section, which is null and void on July 1, 2023, goes out of its way to withhold immunity from the People’s Republic of China, “its proxies, agents or affiliates related to any cause of action wherein the transmission of COVID-19 is a material fact.”

Little determined that only the elections and civil liability legislation would be considered

Gov. Brad Little speaks to the press.

Undated courtesy photo.

in the special session, scheduled to begin at 10 a.m., Aug. 24 in the Statehouse, leaving proposals related to public health district authorities and education funding for the general session in January 2021.

While underscoring his constitutional power to call a special session, Little did not establish for how long lawmakers will meet in Boise, though the announcement pointed out that one or two days is the traditional duration.

“We owe it to taxpayers to pull off a swift and successful special legislative session,” Little stated.

Bonners Ferry police chief kills man while off duty Investigation of shooting in Custer County ongoing

By Lyndsie Kiebert Reader Staff A fatal shooting incident in south-central Idaho involving an off-duty officer on Aug. 1 has ties to the state’s panhandle. In a statement Aug. 13, the Custer County Sheriff’s Office identified the officer involved as Bonners Ferry Police Chief Brian Zimmerman.

According to a press release from Custer County, 73-year-old Boise man Russell V. Liddell “confronted” a group of 16 to 18 people near the Tin Cup Campground in the Salmon-Challis

National Forest west of the town of Challis.

“A verbal altercation between Liddell and members of the group ensued, resulting in shots that were fired,” the release reads. “A member of the group, off-duty Bonners Ferry Police Chief Brian Zimmerman, fired rounds that struck Liddell resulting in his death.”

Law enforcement received a 911 call around 10:30 p.m.

Agencies involved in the investigation include sheriff’s departments from Custer, Bonneville, Bingham and Fremont counties; the Eastern Idaho

Critical Task Force; Idaho Falls Police Department; and Idaho State Police.

In an Aug. 13 press release posted to the Bonners Ferry Police Department Facebook page, city officials stated that they were “aware” of the Aug. 1 shooting, and said Zimmerman “returned fire after being fired upon.” A spokesman for the Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office told the Idaho Mountain Express that the information about being “fired upon” appeared to come from Zimmerman himself, and that “it wouldn’t be appropriate to speculate that” as the

investigation is ongoing.

“Chief Zimmerman made City administration aware of the incident shortly after it occurred,” Bonners Ferry officials stated, “and the City does not feel that administrative leave or other personnel action by the City of Bonners Ferry is necessary at this time as Chief Zimmerman’s actions were in no way related to his employment with the City of Bonners Ferry.”

As of 7 p.m. on Aug. 17, BFPD officials confirmed to the Reader that, “Chief Zimmerman is not currently on administrative leave.”

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NEWS City invites public input on Arts, Culture and Historic Preservation Master Plan

By Reader Staff As the city of Sandpoint prepares to launch into its latest master plan — this time focused on Arts, Culture and Historic Preservation — it has yet again invited the public to weigh in on its priorities via an online survey.

The questionnaire is posted at opentownhall.com/9473 and will remain open until 11:59 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 28. Participants have the option of adding their contact information if they would like to be involved in future planning outreach and opportunities.

This will be Sandpoint’s first Arts, Culture and Historic Preservation Master Plan, for which it has hired Lakota Group and Surale Phillips to undertake a citywide assessment of its cultural arts and historic preservation programs and policies, establish historic contexts for the city, and make recommendations and set

goals for those areas.

“Communities like Sandpoint understand that arts, culture and history contribute to community vitality in many different ways,” the city stated in a news release announcing the survey. “The current phase in the planning process includes public participation and input to identify preservation and cultural arts strengths, opportunities, priorities, aspirations and desired results to shape and enhance the City’s character and quality of life.”

The public participation phase will result in a “State of the City” report that incorporates citizen input, reviews and assesses the subject programs, sets out a vision statement, and recommends key goals and priorities for the plan.

For more information on the Arts, Culture and Historic Preservation Master Plan, visit sandpointartspreservationplan. com.

Judge blocks state ban on female trans athletes

By Reader Staff

A federal judge placed a preliminary injunction Aug. 17 on a new Idaho law banning transgender female athletes from participating on publically funded sports teams.

Under HB 500, female athletes wanting to play sports at Idaho high schools or institutions at the NCAA, NAIA or NJCAA levels would need to prove their gender by undergoing a genital exam, receiving a DNA test or testing testosterone levels.

Bill sponsor Rep. Barbara Ehardt, R-Idaho Falls, told the Idaho Falls Post Register during the 2020 legislative session that she didn’t see the bill as anti-trans, but rather an effort to keep sports fair for cisgendered females — that is, women who identify as women.

The ACLU of Idaho made a statement in February arguing that transitioning genders does not give a student athlete an “inherent competitive advantage.”

“This is another example of the Idaho Legislature attempting to solve problems that do not exist,” ACLU officials wrote at the time, “and are going 6 /

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to result in more expensive lawsuits for the state to defend.”

U.S. District Judge David Nye referred to a lawsuit from the ACLU in his ruling, stating that the plaintiffs “are likely to succeed in establishing the [Fairness in Women’s Sports] Act is unconstitutional.”

“The defense costs arising from HB 500 are already substantial and continuing to mount. And yet we are told that the state is so cash-strapped it has no choice but to cut $99 million from our education budget and deny teachers the pay they were promised,” said House Assistant Majority Leader Ilana Rubel, D-Boise. “It is long past time for the GOP supermajority to reset its priorities.”

The injunction comes a week after a federal judge announced that another anti-transgender Idaho law to come out of 2020 — which stopped people from changing the gender on their birth certificates — went against a court order from years past that determined such a law violated the Equal Protections Clause of the U.S. Constitution.

Bits ’n’ Pieces From east, west and beyond

East, west or beyond, sooner or later events elsewhere may have a local impact.

A recent sampling: Even though they have reserves of $100 billion, 60 of the U.S.’s largest hospital chains snagged $15 billion from the federal CARES Act, according to a report from The New York Times.

Ready or not, elections just became more complicated. Political videos are now easily doctored to entirely misrepresent a candidate. Tactics include clipping out crucial portions of dialogue, or slowing speech to create the appearance of intoxication. The Washington Post predicts that Russia will not hesitate to inundate social media with these realistic computer-generated videos.

While saying they don’t support Joe Biden’s entire presidential platform, former members of George W. Bush’s administration have formed a Super PAC to support Biden’s campaign, The Hill reported.

The U.S. had 66 billionaires in 1990.

Today there are 614 and their net worth has grown 23% during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Americans for Tax Fairness.

IBM recently announced an end to its facial recognition products. Studies have shown the technology falsely identifies African American faces up to 100 times more often than Caucasians, The Week reported.

As of last summer, 99% of bailout money for farmers went to white farm operators, according to The Counter, a nonprofit newsroom that focuses on the food industry. Most of that aid has gone to the wealthiest 10% of farmers. The 2019 farm bailout cost $19 billion and was larger than the auto industry bailout during the Great Recession.

“If American health care were its own country, it would be the fourth largest in the world by gross domestic product,” according to a New York Times editor. She said the U.S spends an average of $3.5 trillion annually on health care, “more than Japan, Germany, France, China, the U.K., Italy, Canada, Brazil, Spain and Australia combined.” Yet for all that expense, she added, the U.S. loses more people to preventable and treatable medical conditions than any of those countries do.”

Using widespread partisan gerrymandering, a political party can obtain fewer votes but gain more state or federal seats.

Some call it parties picking their voters.

Examples: the Associated Press reported that Democrats in 2018 would have won 16 more seats in the U.S. House had it not

By Lorraine H. Marie Reader Columnist

been for gerrymandering. Also in 2018 ,one of the two main parties in North Carolina had 51% of the vote but gained 77% of House seats. So far partisan-gerrymandered maps in North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Texas and Virginia have been overturned by the courts (in Texas federal judges said the gerrymandering was intentionally racist).

Overturning of partisan-gerrymandered districts is also being pursued in Louisiana, Georgia and Alabama.

Research from Georgetown University has calculated that, spread a decade, $1 trillion for infrastructure would create more than 11 million jobs. Four years ago, President Donald Trump promised $1 trillion for infrastructure, which has not yet fully materialized.

According to Joseph Black, founder of the Made in the USA Foundation, the U.S. is not the richest country in the world; it is the 13th richest, based on per capita income. Those countries that are richer are Ireland, Norway, Luxembourg, Switzerland and Singapore.

Recreational use of drones in national parks has been prohibited for six years, but the message either hasn’t gotten out or is ignored, reflected by the thousands of recorded illegal drone incidents since then.

Drone problems include spikes in heart rates for some species, according to Sierra magazine, as well as interruption of the pristine wilderness experience. Recreational drones are also a collision risk for other aircraft. But, drones are proving valuable for scientific research, mapping, fire management, search-and-rescue and monitoring geological events like landslides.

Build kids’ competence while taking a break. Slate.com suggests a “Freaky Friday” where the kids become parents for the night. They fix dinner, get their parents to bed on time and then they stay up as late as they want. Make sure the kids know to check the locks and turn off the lights before they retire.

Blast from the past: The Black Death, a bacterial plague that began in 1347, destroyed up to 60% of the human population — 200 million people. The fleaborne bacterium was carried by rats from a sailing ship. It caused aches, vomiting, and pus and blood-filled sores in armpits and groins. Socioeconomically, since so many skilled workers died, there was a labor shortage, allowing peasants the leverage for demanding better working terms, eventually leading to the end of serfdom — and helping launch capitalism.

NEWS

The U.S. Navy’s most advanced nuclear attack submarine will be named after the Gem State

By Zach Hagadone Reader Staff A keel-laying ceremony has been scheduled for the U.S. Navy’s newest and most advanced nuclear attack submarine, which will bear the name USS Idaho (SSN-799). General Dynamics Electric Boat will conduct the ceremony on Monday, Aug. 24 at its shipyard in Quonset Point, R.I. The submarine Idaho is the 26th ship of the Virginia class and the fifth Navy ship to bear the name of the Gem State.

The last ship commissioned as the USS Idaho was more than 100 years ago in 1919. The New Mexico class battleship USS Idaho (BB-42) saw service in World War II and played a key role in the Battle of Iwo Jima.

Meanwhile, development of the Virginia class of submarines is rooted deep in the deep waters of southern Lake Pend Oreille. Retired U.S. Navy Capt. Richard Colburn, who serves as the chairman of the USS Idaho Commissioning Committee, told the Reader that the first Virginia class submarine was demonstrated and tested at the Navy’s Acoustic Research Detachment based in Bayview.

The Large-Scale Vehicle II (Cutthroat) was a quarter-scale version of a Virginia class submarine that operated in Lake Pend Oreille in the early-2000s. At the time, the Cutthroat was the world’s largest underwater autonomous submarine vehicle and during its operations in the lake provided the opportunity to test out

a range of technologies that have since become standard to the high-tech military platform.

“We’re trying to make sure that everybody understands how critical of a role Bayview has played in the development of the Virginia class program,” Colburn said.

He added that an upshot to the fanfare surrounding the USS Idaho has been “rediscovering a lot of the [naval] history that Idaho has.” For instance, Colburn said, much of the development of the United States’ nuclear-powered underwater vessels has its origins in the Gem State, with large-scale research and development occurring in the Arco area of southeastern Idaho. For a time, almost half the training for nuclear submariners and staff took place at the former artillery proving ground in the high desert.

Former Idaho Gov. Dirk Kempthorne, who also served as U.S. Interior secretary for President George W. Bush, will represent the USS Idaho Commissioning Committee as the chairman of its advisory board and the state of Idaho.

“This is a unique opportunity to have a ship of the line named in honor of the great state of Idaho,” Kempthorne said.

“Idaho has a rich naval history that spans the entire state from Camp Farragut in northern Idaho to Naval Reactors Facility at the Idaho National Lab. In fact, much of the acoustic technology on the future USS Idaho was developed on Lake Pend Oreille at the Navy Research Facility in Bayview, Idaho.”

Added current Gov. Brad Little: “There is a strong tradition of honor and service in the state of Idaho, and it makes me proud this naval ship will bear that name.”

Colburn said the USS Idaho’s keel laying is akin to a groundbreaking ceremony, with christening of the vessel expected in early 2021 and commissioning in early

Top: The USS Idaho Virginia class submarine.

Bottom: A Virginia class submarine firing a bow torpedo. Photos courtesy U.S. Navy.

2023.

A live webcast of the Aug. 24 ceremony will be available starting at 7 a.m.

(PST) and accessible at gdeb.com/news/ events/keel_laying/Idaho.

Following SCOTUS ruling, Reclaim Idaho officially ends Invest in Idaho initiative

By Reader Staff Reclaim Idaho has since June been locked in a high-stakes legal battle with Idaho Gov. Brad Little and Secretary of State Lawerence Denney over whether the grassroots organization can collect signatures online for its Invest in Idaho ballot initiative.

While for a time it looked like Reclaim Idaho would prevail, following a decision in favor of e-signature gathering

by U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill in July, the U.S. Supreme Court sided with Little and Denney in early August — granting the state its requested stay on the gathering of signatures online.

In a statement Aug. 13, Reclaim Idaho co-founder Luke Mayville officially announced the organization would suspend its effort, ending the chance that the Invest in Idaho education funding initiative would appear on the November ballot.

“It is disheartening to see the governor fight tooth-and-nail to defeat an initiative for K-12 funding,” Mayville stated.

“This is an initiative that promised to save Idaho from deep cuts to the K-12 budget, and it’s an initiative that the vast majority of Idahoans support.”

The initiative relied on a two-pronged approach to increasing K-12 education funding by at least $170 million annually: first, by restoring the corporate tax

rate to 8%, where it sat from 1987-2000; and, second, calling for a 3% tax increase on personal income over $250,000 per year for an individual and $500,000 per year for a married couple. According to Reclaim Idaho, the proposal would have affected fewer than 5% of Idahoans.

A poll conducted by Change Research on behalf of Reclaim Idaho in August 2019 showed the initiative was popular among Idahoans. Asked: “In general, if there was a question on the ballot to increase funding for public K-12 education in Idaho paid for by a tax increase on corporations and those making over $250,000, how would you vote?,” 62% of respondents said “yes” while 36% said “no.”

The effort had picked up additional support in recent months, after Little announced $99 million in cuts to K-12 amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and resulting economic downturn.

A full hearing for Reclaim Idaho’s case had been scheduled in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in mid-August, yet, “In an extraordinary act, the Supreme Court intervened before the Ninth Circuit had a chance to consider Reclaim’s case,” the organization stated in a news release.

Justice Sonia Sotomayor criticized the court’s haste in issuing a ruling, saying it undermined the principle that the “highest court will act only after considered deliberation.”

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Enough is enough...

Bouquets: GUEST SUBMISSION: • “Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not.” — The Lorax.

Please allow me to gratefully extend a Bouquet to the volunteers who monitor Lake Pend Oreille. They sample for pollutants and tell the public what they see. They don’t do it for money, they do it for free.

It’s because these individuals care a whole awful lot, that our lake is monitored and will remain a clean spot.

So, if you enjoy the clean waters of LPO, please join me in applauding each monitoring fellow.

A sincere “thank you” to the Water Quality Monitoring Program volunteers!

— Submitted by Travis Dickson, Lake Pend Oreille Waterkeeper.

Barbs: • The U.S. Forest Service recently shared a photo of a campsite that was befouled by an insane amount of trash. There was a mattress, bags full of clothes, plastic and paper trash, and who knows what else underneath the pile of garbage. I just don’t understand why people will go to recreate and camp in nature and leave behind such a pile of trash. One reason I like to camp and be out in nature is to remind myself that there is a world that exists without man’s hand ruining it. I love the pristine walks in the woods, the quiet solace of a campsite at dawn, the clean order of a forest floor. When humans leave their trash behind, we only reaffirm the fact that we are apparently unable to respect nature.

Please, when you are out recreating and camping in our beautiful natural environs, pick up your damn trash. Have some respect for the unspoiled places. And while we’re at it, drown your campfire before leaving the site.

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/ August 20, 2020

Dear editor, I have just read on the internet that three more people have died in a vehicle accident on Highway 200 near the bridge over the Pack River close to Hope.

I know of a small child, two other people in separate accidents who died near the same spot. The red heart in that location is in memory of my wife’s daughter who was killed along with the driver of the car she was in during a head-on crash at the same location 20 years ago.

There are two deceiving curves before the bridge over the river, not to mention parked vehicles due to kayak access to the Pack River.

With a 55 mph speed limit and many people going a little faster, isn’t it about time the speed limit should be reduced to no more than 45 mph?

On Highway 95 near McArthur Lake before Bonners Ferry, there are yellow flashing signs in each direction indicating reduced speed for a long curve in the road. I believe that it is time to start saving lives, slowing down and for those of us still alive, try to enjoy the scenery a bit. We will all get where we are going sooner or later anyway.

It is with a few tears that I write: Let’s get this done.

James Richard Johnson Clark Fork

‘We are better than this’...

Dear editor, In 2016, I saw first-hand how the earning power and economic opportunities my children had were less than I had at their age. I wanted a president who would focus on well-paying jobs, infrastructure improvements and education. “Make America Great Again” sounded good.

But Donald Trump is not who he claimed to be and he hasn’t done what he said he’d do. As a rural Republican grandma, he does not share my values.

I was not raised to name call, belittle and bully, and neither were my children. It’s simply not acceptable, especially from a world leader. We are better than this.

Trump’s recent actions have increased my concerns about his values. Cutting the payroll tax means, plain and simple, the defunding of Social Security and Medicare.

When you add exploding the debt, undermining public education and crippling institutions like the U.S. Postal Service, you’ve got a recipe

for disaster, especially in our rural communities.

For the Republican Party to survive, and even thrive, it must do some soul searching. In order to put the “grand” back into the “Grand Old Party” we must vote President Trump out of office.

That’s why I’m supporting Joe Biden in November.

Mary Ollie Boundary County

Sen. Risch has abandoned his Constitutional duty…

Dear editor, I’m trying to understand the Republican platform for 2020. As articulated by President Trump in his speeches and tweets, it seems to include the following planks: Ignore or minimize the virus that has killed up to 200,000 Americans, put millions out of jobs and threatens the entire population.

Block access to health care for citizens by trying to eliminate the ACA, reducing benefits for Medicare and Medicaid, and having no plan to replace these programs.

Advocacy of white supremacy, calling peaceful protesters terrorists and honoring the traitorous Confederacy.

No censorship of Russia, no matter how heinous their behavior.

Suppressing the vote by any means, even sabotaging U.S. Postal Service functioning.

Sen. Jim Risch is silent on these subjects, implying agreement. Like the rest of the GOP, he is blindly following the President into some kind of dystopian future, heedless of the effect on people. Sen. Risch has abandoned his duty to the Constitution to provide oversight of the Executive Branch of the current administration. He and fellow GOP senators blocked evidence in the impeachment trial, allowing the president to continue to seek foreign election interference. And now, they are standing by, watching the Postal Service being hamstrung, and saying nothing about obvious attempts to suppress the votes of we the citizens.

We need a fresh voice. Vote for Paulette Jordan for Senate.

Ann Warwick Sandpoint

Ruehle’s Rule needs to be overruled...

Dear editor, City Councilwoman Deb Ruehle is once again pushing for a mask

mandate. I have a great deal of respect for Deb because of her profession, passion and commitment to public service, but the idea that we will be able to logistically implement this proposed action and then act on it throughout the entire city leaves much to be discussed.

There is a current mask mandate in Kootenai County. Drive down some time and see the lack of respect for the law or the enforcement of it. It’s a joke.

What would the city have done the weekend of the arts and crafts show? There were hundreds of people maskless. What about Crazy Days weekend? It was an incubator for disease. You can’t enforce these types of laws.

I can see it now, a group of malcontents decide to come into town, refusing to wear a mask, just waiting to be approached by law enforcement, and then refusing to identify themselves and refusing to sign said citation. What now? Do we haul all of them to the county jail?

How much does that cost? A jury trial would most assuredly end in jury nullification.

I would hope the City Council would once again refuse to second this motion, we have better things to do with our time.

Bill Litsinger talkradio@billlitsinger. com Sandpoint

Baldy purchase is a ‘sweetheart deal’ for disc golf course…

Dear editor, Originally purchased for about $950,000, the Baldy Wastewater Fund property is indebted for $1,513,219. The Parks Capital Improvement Fund FY2021 contains a proposed purchase of this property for $200,000.

Pay for the Boyer inflow and infiltration project by selling the Baldy property and repay the Wastewater Fund. Using Parks Capital Improvement Funds (PCIF) is a five-plus-year plan to repay the fund. If you are not looking toward repaying the Wastewater Fund that is just wrong.

Fund the next turf

installation by annual contributions to a specific budget line item from the PCIF instead of spending these dollars on Baldy and avoid raising user fees for sports. The Parks Master Plan identifies deficiencies with hopes of making tennis court changes, field surface changes and drainage improvements. The PCIF would more appropriately be used to fund those changes, rather than going out to the public again for sales tax revenue. Use your dollars to take care of what you’ve got instead of taking on more!

I fear a “partnership” with Eureka Institute will use the land for disc golf to the exclusion of more general park activities. The Eureka Institute has already held events there in violation of their lease. The mayor has been a board member of the Eureka Institute. He should recuse himself from any voice in this matter.

Do not approve the use of PCIFs for the Baldy property. The effort from within the city is simply a sweetheart deal for the Eureka Institute.

Carrie Logan Sandpoint

PERSPECTIVES

Emily Articulated

A column by and about Millennials

Canceled

By Emily Erickson Reader Columnist So-called “cancel culture” is a term that has entered the mainstream conversation with increasing frequency over the years, as people and organizations have been called out for their current or former undesirable opinions or actions, and reprimanded through public attacks on their character and employment.

Highly publicized examples of “canceling” include film producer Harvey Weinstein, who, following a wave of allegations was fired, blacklisted and convicted for sexual assault charges; author JK Rowling, shamed and boycotted by fans and not renewed by her publisher for transphobic views; and non-celebrity New York dog owner Amy Cooper, who was exposed, shamed and fired following release of a video that captured her racist diatribe toward a Black man who was bird-watching in Central Park.

This phenomenon is widely contemplated in the public realm, by prominent figures and in prestigious publications — examined for its nuances, for its breadth of severity and its effect on our society.

Although not explicitly referred to as such, former President Barack Obama alluded to “cancel culture” at the Obama Foundation Summit in 2019, when he warned of the sweeping harshness of canceling people for their former beliefs and actions.

“This idea of purity and you’re never compromised

Emily Erickson. and you’re always politically ‘woke’ and all that stuff. You should get over that quickly,” he said. “The world is messy.

There are ambiguities. People who do really good stuff have flaws.”

More directly, in a 2019 Time magazine article, “Cancel Culture is Not Real — At Least Not in the Way People Think,” writer Sarah Hagi described cancel culture as a great equalizer for the marginalized, explaining, “racist, sexist, and bigoted behavior or remarks don’t fly like they used to. This applies to not only wealthy people or industry leaders but anyone whose privilege has historically shielded them from public scrutiny.”

Most recently, President Donald Trump brought cancel culture to the mainstage at his 2020 Independence Day speech, claiming, “One of [the left’s] political weapons is ‘cancel culture,’ driving people from their jobs, shaming dissenters and demanding total submission from anyone who disagrees. ... This is the very definition of totalitarianism,

and it is completely alien to our culture and our values.”

Beyond the notions of cancel culture as the great social corrector or the end of American life as we know it, we don’t often talk about the inner psycho-social workings of “canceling,” and the role they play in society as a whole.

I think about it as a collective call to action, prompted by a person or group’s harmful beliefs or actions. When someone does something we deem socially unacceptable, or behaves in a way that is counterproductive to our ability to live and function within a group, we “cancel” them in an attempt to incite the powerful force of shame.

Shame, or the feeling of humiliation or distress caused by wrongdoing, has played an important role in our development as a social species, with its administration being a way to establish social norms and expectations for the entire group.

When an individual is shamed for a harmful act or opinion, we make an example of them — adding another line item to our list of unwritten rules necessary for group membership. By canceling someone for sexual assault or hate speech, or publicly advocating consequences for their actions, we are collectively deciding those behaviors are unacceptable in our society.

But an important, and often overlooked, aspect of the role of shame in society is that it’s a multifaceted tool. It can be applied to a person or organization with undesirable behav-

ior simply to evoke powerful feelings of humiliation and discomfort about their actions.

Additionally, it can be used to set a standard of acceptable behaviors for other members of the group, allowing us to learn from the mistakes and missteps of others. Finally, it can be used as an incentive for people at the receiving end of its wrath to do better in the future, correcting their course and making reparations for their actions —

all so they never have to feel that way again.

Like shame, we need to create space in our society for “cancel culture” in order for the phenomenon to act as the multifaceted tool that it is, with some cases calling for sweeping, irreparable social damage to individuals and organizations, and others, allowing for course correction and personal growth.

Retroactive

By BO

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Mad about Science:

By Brenden Bobby Reader Columnist You may consider yourself a meat aficionado. You may even possess pillow covers and pajamas covered with bacon print.

Perhaps you abhor the thought of consuming the flesh of another being, or you just don’t eat it for health reasons. No judgment, I can’t and won’t consume any wheat or milk.

Whatever your stance on the role played by your canine incisors, you are bound to discover some interesting information in this article.

Aside from cooking food on an open flame, sausage-making may be one of the oldest forms of cooking in the kitchen. Every time you fire up the ol’ grill and start charring some weenies, you’re upholding a tradition that goes back at least 1,000 (but likely very many more) years.

The importance of sausages in the pre-refrigeration human diet cannot be overstated. Meat is a fickle thing that’s prone to spoilage, and spoiled meat can very easily kill someone when ingested. However, when mixed with fat, salt and seasonings, a magical thing happens: meat goes bad at a dramatically slower pace.

Left unattended in a lukewarm environment — between 40 degrees and 140 degrees Fahrenheit, often known as the “danger zone” in food prep circles — meat can spoil in as short a time as 20 minutes. That’s because the meat is dead, and dead meat is a natural conduit for bacteria. Bacteria break down the meat to make more bacteria — it’s the way of the world, and it’s how nature recycles just about 10 /

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/ August 20, 2020

sausage

everything, excluding plastics.

Enter: salt. Salt is a desiccant, which means it’s extremely good at pulling water from surrounding surfaces like a sponge; and, just like a sponge, there’s only so much water the salt can hold, which is why the salty ocean doesn’t just dry up.

When you add salt to meat, the salt pulls water from the protein and slows the bacteria’s ability to survive and propagate, meaning your meat won’t spoil as quickly.

While refrigeration was invented in the 1700s, it wasn’t available for home use until 1913. This meant that people had to cure or salt their meat to preserve it for longer than a few hours after butchering. This also means that pre-Industrial Revolution humans had a lot of salt in their diet.

Salt has been a hot commodity for a very long time. It was so important to the preservation of food that Benjamin Franklin secured a secret deal with Bermuda during the Revolutionary War to supply the revolutionaries with salt at a time when Britain had a massive amount of control over international trade.

But enough about salt, let’s get to the meat of the article.

Sausage-making is equal parts art and science, as any local hunter well knows. If you don’t include enough fat in your sausage, you end up with gamy, dry sausage that leaves a literal bad taste in your mouth.

Yet, while sausage recipes have been passed down through some families around the world for countless generations, most peoples’ experience with sausage comes in two flavors: links and patties.

Hot dogs are technically

Brought to you by:

a form of sausage, as they are ground meat, fat and salt crammed into a casing, and they’re designed to be homogenous, bland and inoffensive.

Most sausage patties hold more flavor than hot dogs, as they are usually mixed with spices like ground black pepper. Sausage patties are usually consumed as a breakfast food.

Sausage comes in a third form common in Central American cuisine: as ground meat without a casing. Chorizo is a Spanish sausage that is sometimes fermented, and will often appear with or without a casing.

Unlike hot dogs, chorizo is often spiced very well, presenting with a full-bodied and aromatic flavor.

That’s right, I’m a meat sommelier. A sommeatlier.

Andouille, pronounced aanDOO-ey, is a personal favorite of mine. Used extensively in French and Cajun cuisine, it is primarily meat from the intestine, seasoned with garlic and wine. It has a rich and garlicky flavor that compliments spicy food without becoming overpowering.

Weisswurst, or white sausage from Bavaria, is made using minced veal and pork back — better known as bacon — with hints of onion, lemon, ginger and cardamom. While I haven’t tried weisswurst, the flavors seem as though they would be smoky, balanced by a bit of citrus and earth.

Sausage isn’t just a meatatarian’s game. Vegans have eked out a piece of the sausage market catering to those who are health conscious while still loving the smoky flavor only sausage can deliver. Most processed vegetarian sausage from grocery

stores use a mix of wheat gluten, the protein that is extracted from wheat (and something that those of us suffering from Celiac disease are extremely allergic to), or from soy. Neither of these are particularly good for you in large quantities, but alternatives do exist.

The key to creating a good sausage is an abundance of protein and fats. In the plant world, this can be found with a mix of pinto beans, black beans and

pecans, while using mushrooms as a filler. Very few manufacturing companies seem ready to invest in mass-producing vegan sausage with these ingredients, but it has been a popular experiment among adventurous vegan home cooks.

I bet you didn’t expect inclusivity in this article.

Stay curious and be kind to one another, 7B.

Random Corner r showers?

Don’t know much about meteo • Meteors are basically space rocks that fall toward planets or other celestial bodies. The atmosphere of a celestial body heats up these rocks making them appear bright. The bright streak is not actually the rock, but the glowing hot air as the rock zips through the atmosphere.

• Most meteor showers are caused by debris from comets.

When Earth moves through those debris trails, we see increased numbers of meteors.

• Meteor showers can be best viewed in the early morning hours or on a dark, moonless night.

• Two meteor showers are caused by debris shed by asteroids: the Quadrantids are very likely caused by debris from the minor planet 2003 EH1; the Geminid meteor shower comes from debris shed by asteroid 3200 Phaethon.

• The Orionid meteor shower

We can help!

(which occurs in late October each year) is created by dust and debris left behind by the passage of Comet 1P/Halley.

• Meteors fall to Earth during the day, although we can’t see them. Also, most meteors never hit Earth’s surface. Almost all of them are smaller than a grain of sand and disintegrate in the atmosphere.

• Most meteor showers are named after the constellation from which they appear to hail.

For example, the Perseids appear to “come” from the constellation Perseus.

• The earliest record of the Perseids meteor shower is found in Chinese annals from 36 CE. • Scientists believe that around 48.5 tons (44,000 kg) of materials from meteors fall on the surface of the Earth every day. On any night you can usually look up and see at least a few meteors every hour.

PERSPECTIVES

Mayor’s Roundtable: A Sandpoint legacy

By Mayor Shelby Rognstad Reader Contributor

Friday, Aug. 7 marked the long awaited grand reopening of War Memorial Field. This project had been envisioned by many residents for years.

Since 73% of the Sandpoint voters approved of the Local Option 1% tax in 2015, the city has been laser-focused on completing the project within the window of the five-year levy that expires on Dec. 31.

I’m very proud of this accomplishment. I’m proud of our team at City Hall and I’m proud of all the user groups and citizen volunteers that have contributed to this vision.

Not only was this project the most robust capital project ever taken on by the city, it was in some ways one of the most difficult challenges politically.

Today Sandpoint celebrates a world-class athletic field identical to the field played on by the Dallas Cowboys and the Las Vegas Raiders. It allows multiple practices to occur simultaneously, like football, soccer, baseball, softball and lacrosse. It also allows backto-back play for games regardless of weather conditions and is even playable in the winter if there is no snow.

This dramatic increase in playability — over five times that of the grass field it replaced — is the ultimate reason I, along with the City Council, voted to approve the cork/sand infill turf. With such an investment of taxpayer dollars, it was our responsibility as elected officials to ensure that the field served the most users possible and was able to meet the high demand required for Sandpoint’s many athletic groups. This field was the only

Sandpoint Mayor Shelby Rognstad.

choice that could achieve that goal. The cork/sand infill is the best option for environmental sustainability, health of users and field temperature.

In the current environment of COVID-19 and the public restrictions it brings, I’m reminded of just how fortunate we are to have such a quality amenity that can serve the needs of so many.

I spoke last weekend with a family member in western Washington, where COVID restrictions have closed public parks. She shared with me how she would give anything to be able to take her kids to a park. Memorial Field is in some ways the keystone of Sandpoint’s world-class park system. It is because of amenities like this that life here is so good for so many. It is no wonder why we choose to call

this place home.

Upon completion of Memorial Field I’m also reminded of how we got here. Groups like the Bulldog Bench, Friends of Memorial Field, Litehouse foods, The Festival of Sandpoint, Durfee Construction, Apex Construction, Avista Utilities, Keokee Publishing and many citizen volunteers all worked together to drive the 1% Local Option Tax Campaign; raise money for the field lighting; rebuild the Victory Bell; and contribute money, time and effort to rebuild Sandpoint’s stadium field.

When I look just beyond Memorial Field I see the same pattern of citizen volunteerism and philanthropic impact across our entire parks system.

Just next door at Lakeview Park, I’m reminded of those who contributed their time and resources to build the Native Plant Garden. Collin Beggs Timber Framing Co. just last month donated a beautiful timber frame arbor for the garden adjacent to Memorial Field. When I look further I’m reminded of all the volunteer efforts by Sandpoint Tennis Association to improve our public tennis courts and keep them in great condition.

I’m reminded of the donated resources and countless

hours of volunteerism that the Sandpoint Disc Golf Association provides. Sandpoint has a tournament-grade disc golf course, Baldyfoot, only because of the years of dedication from this group and its members.

When I look up the Little Sandcreek watershed, I see a budding bike trail network that exists only because of the long hours and resources consistently provided by the Pend Oreille Peddler membership, which has built and maintained many of the bicycle trails closest to Sandpoint.

Then there’s the Friends of the Mickinnick Trial, Friends of the Pend d’Oreille Bay Trail and their iconic contributions to Sandpoint’s world-class park system.

This local practice of philanthropy and volunteerism is nothing new. Rather, it is a longstanding tradition that exemplifies our Sandpoint

residents’ commitment to community and quality of life.

In the early 1950s, the Lions Club built Sandpoint’s greatest prize, City Beach. One of their members, Archie Yager, built the iconic picnic shelter pavilion at the beach.

When I look around our parks system today, I see a monument to human character that defines this place and makes it special. These people and their legacies remind me why this place is special, why I love it here and why it is worth fighting to make it a better place. This is Sandpoint.

Please join me for the Mayor’s Roundtable to discuss all this and more on Friday, Aug. 21 at 4 p.m. on Zoom: bit.ly/3kZQdZt. You can also watch on Facebook Live through my page, Mayor Shelby Rognstad. Please subscribe.

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OUTDOORS

Purple gold

Tips for a successful and safe huckleberry picking adventure

By Lyndsie Kiebert Reader Staff Perhaps even more famous than the state stone — the star garnet — is another sought-after purple gem found in the mountains of Idaho: huckleberries.

The tart and juicy morsels are a staple of North Idaho summers. By brushing up on some huckleberry picking etiquette and best practices, you can hit the trails knowing your overflowing buckets were filled safely and ethically.

Idaho Panhandle National Forests spokesman Patrick Lair said one huckleberry picking tip stands out above the others: hand pick only the ripe berries to prevent damage to the plant.

“Huckleberries are such a great resource for people and wildlife,” he said.

“If we can all gather them in a sustainable way, we can ensure an abundant source of berries for current and future generations

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to use and enjoy.”

Lair added that any picking methods that damage or destroy huckleberry bushes are illegal, and could result in a fine for damaging natural resources.

Another tip: It’s frowned upon to be a huckleberry hoarder. Forest Service personnel encourage people to only pick what berries they are able to consume themselves. Lair said IPNF “operates on an ‘honor’ system in which people self-assess and self-manage the quantity they are picking for personal use,” and noted that commercial picking or reselling the berries you pick from public lands is not allowed.

Huckleberry picking also requires a bit of trial-and-error adventure. IPNF does not recommend picking locations — rather, those hungry for huckleberries need to find prize patches on their own.

“People often keep their favorite picking locations a secret,” Lair said.

When seeking that perfect patch, also be sure to find adequate parking. Blocking traffic on mountain roads isn’t safe for anyone.

Finally, humans aren’t the only ones searching for the elusive huckleberry. Lair said “bears love huckleberries and make them a major source of nourishment,” so “huckleberry pickers should always carry bear spray and be bear aware when picking.”

Nothing says North Idaho August like purple-stained fingertips and buckets of shiny round huckleberries. Respect the plants, and strive to keep the tradition alive for years to come.

Top: A huckleberry picker is caught red-handed with a few berries. Courtesy photo. / August 20, 2020

August is a busy month in Sandpoint. Whether you’re out swimming in the lake to cool off or spying on wild animals in their habitat, there’s always something interesting to photograph. Here are a few shots that made the cut this week. If you’d like to submit a photo for a future issue, please send to ben@sandpointreader.com

Right: A red fox stretches and yawns beside a dirt road. Photo by Racheal Baker.

Bottom left: An inverted photo of Sand Creek on a calm summer day.

Photo by Bill Mitchell.

Bottom right: A beautiful sunset on Lake Pend Oreille. Photo by Bill Borders.

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FEATURE

North Idaho real estate blooms

The boom is on but another foreclosure crisis looms

By Raphael Barta Reader Contributor

It is hard to believe we have been living with the COVID-19 virus for eight months now. It has become the prism through which we see everything these days: local, state and national politics; the nature of our society; personal relationships; the economy; and even real estate.

Although North Idaho has not been hit as hard by as a lot of other places, there have been so many American deaths from the virus — and with such shattering effects on the economy — it is no longer possible to deny it or wave it all away as a hoax.

There has been no V-shaped recovery; indeed, hardly any recovery at all for the other 99%. There have been very few sectors of the U.S. economy that have escaped the devastating effects of the shutdown — except for Amazon, home improvement stores like The Home Depot and, apparently, North Idaho real estate.

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The price of residential real estate and smaller parcels of vacant land in Bonner and Boundary counties has surged over the past three months. The curve that had been steadily rising these past several years at about 6% annual appreciation has become a straight line upwards: homes I thought were overpriced in April now look like a good buy in August.

Housing nationwide has been a bright spot during the past eight months, but it has been especially strong here. Some factors that contribute to this are: • The word is out on North Idaho.

We have already endured several waves of being “discovered” over the past 20 years. While the colonizers used to be tourists or second-home buyers, and therefore somewhat temporary, now they are becoming more permanent — they are staying year round.

As in some other western states, things have deteriorated to the point where our laid-back Idaho lifestyle and natural beauty are just too attractive. I notice this in the unusual example of properties that did not sell because they were too remote are now selling because they are too remote.

• Interest rates are at historic lows, and the 10-year Treasury bill that greatly influences mortgage rates is at a record low of .45%. Refinance applications are at all-time highs. The Fed has been pumping so much liquidity into the system that the main effect is to inflate the price of homes and land because money is so cheap and so available.

• The market here is “thin” at the best of times; that is, there are limited choices in the housing inventory, which creates a floor for prices. The recent intensified demand has absorbed so many listings that in some categories, there are literally only a handful of properties for buyers to review. In the city of Sandpoint there are 11 listings under $400,000. One under $300,000.

I should point out that this bubble is only in the residential and vacant land sectors: commercial properties have not experienced the same degree of price appreciation. In fact, the factors that are influencing the meteoric rise in residential and land are having the opposite effect on commercial. The future of office buildings and locations for large-seating restaurants, even clothing stores, is questionable.

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What’s ahead for the Fall and into 2021?

• The drivers of the ongoing virus scare/civic unrest/remote work from a better place/just get the hell out of ________, will continue to create strong buyer demand and move prices up, right through the November elections. Nevermind the stock market, which has ceased to be a meaningful indicator of the economy, there is an inevitable recession on the horizon. The ripple effects (tidal wave effects?) of the virus on the economy are still coming.

• Mortgage delinquencies hit an alltime high this week, surpassing the 2008 meltdown. The inability to make the mortgage payment is of course brought on by the massive shutdown of the U.S. economy, and only the forbearance initiatives by the government have kept a foreclosure bloom from occurring. For now. That multi-billion dollar can has been kicked down the road, but “forbearance” does not mean “forgiveness” and there will be another foreclosure crisis when the government props are no longer in place. I expect this to occur about March next year.

• In the 2008 boom, there were a ton of vacant land subdivisions of five acre properties that had been approved by Bonner County. The over-supply has been absorbed and the new pricing for a decent five acre parcel has more than doubled to a current median price of about $135,000.

Buyers who cannot find what they are looking for in an existing home have turned to new-builds on small acreages as the alternative. In this Post-COVID age, a little land around you to separate from the neighbors is a huge amenity. Land will continue to be a great investment.

• The strength of the real estate market is also evident in Bonners Ferry, Priest River and Clark Fork — it’s not limited to Sandpoint. These communities will continue to be attractive to people abandoning the pressures of today’s urban crisis centers for the beauty and tranquility of North Idaho.

Raphael Barta is an associate broker with Century 21 Riverstone in Sandpoint.

He maintains an active practice in residential, land and the commercial markets.

Contact him at raphaelb@sandpoint.com.

COMMUNITY

‘They are stealing our history’

Museum experiences rash of thefts, closes to the public for a week

By Lyndsie Kiebert Reader Staff The Bonner County Museum will close its doors to the public the week of Aug. 24 to heighten security measures after several items were stolen from exhibits in recent weeks.

The thefts came to light when Museum Interim Director Heather Upton noticed two pieces of advertisements from the Lakeside Laundry portion of the “Women Who Shaped Bonner County” exhibit were missing.

“In terms of the value on the open market, it’s very insignificant,” Upton said of the ads. “But it’s huge in terms of our collection … That was hard for me to process.”

Some time later, Upton noticed more missing items: a receipt enclosed in plexiglass, an antique compass, an SD card full of digitized photos and more.

“Someone donates a very special artifact to us to help us tell the story of Bonner County, and when someone takes that from the museum it’s not only hurting the museum — they’re hurting the community,” she said. “They are stealing our history. That is what’s happening … We were all very hurt and outraged.”

Upton said the museum does not have the means to put every item under glass or attach a sensor to every object, as in some larger museums and galleries.

“We do not have the funding to be able to do that, [and] I don’t want to inhibit the creativity and the storytelling within the exhibits by not being able to put certain pieces out because certain people can’t be trusted,” she said.

The Bonner County Museum will be closed to the public for a week starting Monday, Aug. 24, and will be using that time to install more cameras and remove some archival items from the current exhibits. However, museum employees and volunteers will still be working to fulfill research requests and will be available to accept donations for their fundraising yard sale slated for Sept. 12.

The museum is also accepting monetary donations to go toward new security measures, and is always accepting new sponsorships and memberships to fund day-to-day operations.

Upton said that facing theft in the midst of an already tumultuous year due to the COVID-19 pandemic has been difficult.

“We go to such lengths to preserve Bon-

ner County history for everyone,” she said, “and the fact that they are working against us by taking those pieces from the collection is devastating.”

The museum has filed a police report regarding the missing items. Anyone with information can call the museum, no questions asked, at 208-263-2344.

An exhibit at the Bonner County History Museum. Three pieces were stolen from this display, including a large calendar to the left of the photograph. A small coin was also taken from another exhibit, along with several other items.

Photo courtesy Bonner County History Museum.

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COMMUNITY

Animal shelter hosts online fundraising auction

By Lyndsie Kiebert Reader Staff When people fall on hard times, so do their pets. Regardless, “socioeconomic status does not dictate the amount of love someone has for their pet and the pet for them,” said Mandy Evans, executive director of the Panhandle Animal Shelter.

“We see families who need a bit of help to keep their pets with them and we are happy to be there for them.

We can only do that due to the generosity of our community,” she added.

The community has the opportunity to continue that support as PAS hosts a live online auction fundraiser — called Sit. Stay.

Give. — on Tuesday, Aug. 25 from 11 a.m. to noon. Silent auction items will become available for bidding on Friday, Aug. 21 at 9 a.m.

Evans said the online auction format is new for the shelter, but she’s excited to try it.

“Our No. 1 priority is to keep pets with

their families,” she said, noting that PAS helps more than 8,000 local animals and their families annually through adoption, keeping stray pets safe, spay and neuter opportunities, the pet food bank, helpline and Home To Home program.

“We are experiencing an increased need to support our community,” she added.

Those wishing to participate in the Sit. Stay. Give. event will have to register for free ahead of time in order to obtain the link to the live auction broadcast. Visit pasidaho. org to access the registration link.

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events August 20-27, 2020

THURSDAY, August 20

Live Music w/ John Daffron 6-8pm @ MickDuff’s Beer Hall

COMMUNITY

Chamber welcomes Wildflower Spa at Seasons with ribbon cutting

Bonner County Fair (Aug. 19-22) Miah Kohal Band and the Devon Wade Band live in concert 7:30pm @ Bonner County Fairgrounds Pre-sale tickets $10/adult, $5/youth

FriDAY, August 21

Live Music w/ Devon Wade 6:30-9:30pm @ MickDuff’s Beer Hall Early Bird Paddle Plus 6:30-8am @ Outdoor Experience Free class, rentals available, meet out back on Sand Creek behind OE Challenge of Champions bullriding 7:30pm @ Bonner County Fairgrounds Pre-sale tickets $12/adult, $8/youth

Live Music w/ Bright Moments Jazz 5-8pm @ Pend d’Oreille Winery The Art of Fly Fishing Exhibit 5-7pm @ The Old Powerhouse Presented by POAC and the Panhandle Chapter of Trout Unlimited. Festivities include a video, a live fly-tying demo and a collection of antique rods and reels.

SATURDAY, August 22 Sandpoint Farmers’ Market 9am-1pm @ Farmin Park The Market is back at Farmin Park!

Live Music w/ Mike & Shanna Thompson 6-8pm @ Idaho Pour Authority “Best of Follies” drive-in movie 8pm @ The Dover Barn Gates open at 7:30 p.m. and show starts at 8 p.m. Tickets only $10, available at angelsoversandpoint.org

LED E C CAN

Live Music w/ Mostly Harmless 6:30-9:30pm @ MickDuff’s Beer Hall Saturday Movie Night Dusk @ The Longshot Spinal Tap Sandpoint Smash Demolition Derby 7:30pm @ Bonner County Fairgrounds Pre-sale tickets $15/adult, $10/youth

SunDAY, August 23 Piano Sunday w/ Dwayne Parsons 3-5pm @ Pend d’Oreille Winery

monDAY, August 24 Monday Night Blues Jam w/ Truck Mills 7pm @ Eichardt’s Pub

Monday Night Run Posse (free) 6pm @ Outdoor Experience

tuesDAY, August 25 wednesDAY, August 26

Sandpoint Farmers’ Market 3-5:30pm @ Farmin Park The Market is back at Farmin Park!

Live Music w/ John Firshi 7pm @ Eichardt’s Pub

Group Ride + Mini Clinic 5:30-7pm @ Pine St. Woods Hosted by Outdoor Experience, advanced edition, free

ThursDAY, August 27 Live Music w/ Benny Baker 6-8pm @ MickDuff’s Beer Hall

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By Reader Staff The Greater Sandpoint Chamber of Commerce welcomed Wildflower Spa at Seasons as its newest member, celebrating the business July 24 with a ribbon cutting ceremony.

Originally trained in injury treatments, owner Keisch Exner-Berrey now has more than a decade of training and practice that she brings to every aspect of her spa. Specializing in Swedish, Shiatsu deep tissue, trigger point, aromatherapy and pregnancy message, Exner-Berrey has added many licensed specialists with a wide range of

The Art of Fly Fishing

By Reader Staff Fly fishing is an art surrounded by mystique — a communion between fish and fishermen and a practice of being one with the environment, the water, the insects and the fish.

The Panhandle Chapter of Trout Unlimited is joining Pend Oreille Arts Council to present a unique exhibition titled “The Art of Fly Fishing” from 5-7 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 21 at the Old Powerhouse in Sandpoint.

The event, at 120 Lake St., features a video called “The Best Places in the World to Fly Fish,” a live fly-tying demonstration, a collection of antique fly rods and reels, and fly fishing-inspired photography and paintings by local artists.

Chamber ambassadors and staff welcome Wildflower Spa at Seasons to their membership with a ribbon cutting ceremony on July 24. Photo by Ricci Witte. talents to her staff.

At Wildflower Spa, clients find treatments such as hair salon services, skin care, nail care, message, waxing and tinting. All their technicians are highly trained in both the services they provide and in the Aveda products they use. Wildflower Spa is open seven day a week from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

For more information, visit Wildflower Spa at 424 Sandpoint Ave. or go to thewildflowerdayspa.com

Class of 1970 reunion postponed until 2021

By Reader Staff

The Sandpoint High School Class of 1970 announced it would postpone its 50th reunion until Sept. 17-18, 2021. The reunion was originally scheduled for summer 2020. For more information, contact debaphillips2000@yahoo.com.

STAGE & SCREEN

Filmed in the Inland Northwest

We take a look at some of the movies and television shows filmed in our region

By Ben Olson Reader Staff The Inland Northwest has a lot to offer.

Between the majestic natural beauty and the unique small town locations that abound in this region, the Inland NW is often thought of as a “secret” by those who live here. But filmmakers have tapped into this region dozens of times over the years, capitalizing on the lesser-known locations to help differentiate their films from the rest of the herd.

Here are a few of the more notable films and television shows filmed in our region.

Benny & Joon and Tag — Spokane, Wash.

Spokane has emerged as a preferred location for feature films in recent years. In 2018 alone, 17 films had on-set locations in the Lilac City.

One of the most well known films set and filmed in Spokane is the 1990s romantic comedy Benny & Joon, starring Johnny Depp and Mary Stuart Masterson. The quirky comedy was filmed all over Spokane, with one iconic scene, in which Depp performed an homage to Buster Keaton, filmed at Riverfront Park. Another scene, where Depp’s character channels Charlie Chaplin’s dinner roll dance, was filmed at Mary Lou’s Milk Bottle, a classic diner that remains a favorite Northwest roadside attraction. The train scenes at the beginning of the movie were shot near Metaline Falls, Wash.

A more recent film shot in Spokane is Tag, from 2018, which makes sense since the story was based on 10 real life friends from Gonzaga Prep who engaged in a never-ending game of tag. While most of the shooting took place in Atlanta, Ga., a handful of scenes were shot in Spokane.

Northern Exposure — Roslyn, Wash.

Ostensibly set in Alaska, this 1990s sitcom revolutionized television. Winning more than two dozen awards in its five-year run, Northern Exposure was filled with iconic, quirky characters; sharp writing; and a perfect blend of comedy and drama that earned it a cult following that endures today.

What many didn’t realize was that the fictional town of Cicely, Alaska, was actually Roslyn, located in the Cascade Mountains of Washington. The opening sequence of the show featured a moose walking through “Cicely.” The moose — named Mort — was provided by Washington State University, where he was part of a captive herd. The crew ended up fencing off the town and setting Mort loose, luring him around with food.

Fans of the show can still visit Roslyn to

see principal locations in the show, including the KBHR radio station, Ruth-Anne’s general store and the famous camel mural on Roslyn’s Cafe.

The Revenant and The River Wild — Kootenai Falls near Libby, Mont.

While the majority of Alejandro González Iñárritu’s critically-acclaimed film The Revenant was filmed in the Canadian Rocky Mountains west of Calgary, Alberta, a powerful scene was filmed about 90 minutes from Sandpoint. When the protagonist frontiersman Hugh Glass, in an Oscar-winning performance by Leonardo DiCaprio, escapes from a party of pursuing Arikara, it is clear he is using the rapids of Kootenai Falls west of Libby, Mont.

With a 90-foot drop, Kootenai Falls is one of the largest free-flowing waterfalls in the Northwest. Movie buffs might also recognize this stretch of water from the 1994 The River Wild starring Meryl Streep and Kevin Bacon.

Dante’s Peak and Heaven’s Gate — Wallace and Mirror Lake, Idaho When the film crew chose Wallace to film the 1997 thriller Dante’s Peak, starring Pierce Brosnan and Linda Hamilton, they digitally altered the small town’s appear-

In this scene from Dante’s Peak filmed at Mirror Lake near Talache. The set cabin of the film’s grandmother character can still be seen today. Photo courtesy Flickr. ance to make the big hill just south of town look like a giant volcano. A lot of scenes took place in Wallace’s historic downtown, seen right off Interstate 90. Closer to home, the scene where Brosnan rows Hamilton’s family across the lake to rescue their grandmother was shot at Mirror Lake near Talache. The grandmother’s cabin was built on the western shore of Mirror Lake, and it can still be seen today.

The 1980 western Heaven’s Gate, starring Kris Kristofferson and Christopher Walken, was mostly filmed in western Montana, with principal photography taking place in Glacier National Park, but a handful of scenes were also shot in Wallace.

Radioflash — Sandpoint Luckily, Sandpoint has yet to emerge as a prime location for feature films, but a handful of lesser-known movies have been filmed here. Most recently, the 2019 sci-fi drama Radioflash featured a scene shot on the bridge over the boat ramp in Hope.

The movie was largely panned by critics, earning a 0% on Rotten Tomatoes for its lethargic plot and haphazard themes.

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Conquer the Outdoors Again Office Located in the Ponderay Walmart Vision Center Call and make an appointment today: 208.255.5513 August 20, 2020 /

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‘Art is instrumental’

The MCS Instrument Art Factory blends art and music for local music students

By Ben Olson Reader Staff Passersby at the Music Conservatory of Sandpoint’s building at 110 Main St. may have noticed the two public pianos on the sidewalk have received an artistic facelift.

The pianos are the first installment in a new project called Instrument Art Factory at MCS, which blends art and music for local music students.

MCS Executive Director Karin Wedemeyer said the project is the result of brainstorming a way to find uses for many of the instruments the conservatory receives that are beyond repair.

“There’s no heaven for instruments, so we need to give them a new life,” Wedemeyer told the Reader.

The project is a collaboration between MCS and local artists Kelly Price and Peter Goetzinger, who are spearheading the program with local music students interested in widening their creative output.

“Our goal in creating this program is to open new doorways in student musicians’ minds,” Price told the Reader.

“We believe artistry is a human birthright. Everyone benefits from expressing themselves through visual art, whether they’ve been officially deemed as an ‘artist’ in their young years or not.”

Goetzinger said the program is especially beneficial for young people who may not believe they have artistic ability.

“We hear this all the time, ‘I can’t draw’; ‘I’m not an artist,’” Goetzinger said. “By giving [kids] a venue and the materials and confidence to understand that we are all born artists — that the very nature of being a human is to be an artist — we want to encourage that through 20 /

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whatever means.”

Goetzinger and Price have collaborated to create small, manageable class sizes to give each participating student the time and attention they desire to help give these instruments a new lease on life. The public pianos were the first phase of the ongoing project, with each painted in colorful designs by the students.

“There were about 10 kids who signed up [for the piano painting],” Price said. “Each of us had four to five kids and officiated over each piano, then we switched leaders on each side. It became a different interpretation then.”

“We worked with the kids so that they came up with the ideas and designs,” Goetzinger said.

“We let them loose and they all submitted their drawings and we combined several of them.

That was allowing children to be empowered through art and that decision making showed there was no right or wrong way to go about this.”

The pianos were donated to MCS and have sat outside the building on Second Avenue through hot summer days and cold winter nights, providing passersby the unique opportunity to bang out their favorite pieces any time they feel inspired.

“These two pianos, we collectively have noticed, are actually loved,” Wedemeyer said. “You can come by at 2 a.m. and someone will be playing everything from sonatas to ‘Jingle Bells.’ Winter had done a bit of damage to them, but one day I was walking out there and there were these two people who polished and cleaned them up. They became our piano fairies.”

Wedemeyer said mother and daughter Jennifer and Ada Greve — the “piano fairies” — have gone above and beyond to keep the instruments cleaned up and

neat when the elements have been less than ideal. She said the Greves will be invited to thank them when the project holds its first public showing, which will most likely be coordinated through the Pend Oreille Arts Council.

The classes are slated to begin in fall, most likely during the second or third week of September. Because they are microclasses, social distancing will be practiced. For those interested in signing up for future classes, contact MCS at mcs@sandpointconservatory.org. Those who have instruments that are beyond repair and would like to donate them to the project should email or call 208-265-4444 ahead of time to make sure someone is available to receive the donation.

Wedemeyer said MCS is currently writing grants to help fund for this unique class, but donations will be gladly accepted by community members and businesses. Since MCS is a 501(c)3 nonprofit, all donations are tax deductible. Wedemeyer said the finished art pieces may

even be auctioned off at a later date to help fund the project.

“The whole philosophy has to be really collaborative,” she said.

“Any time we can bring people together with a goal, there’s a huge amount of rewards and success.”

Top: Kelly Price and Peter Goetzinger stand next to one of the artful pianos, holding two of the Instrument Art Factory’s next projects: a violin and a sousaphone. Photo by Ben Olson.

Bottom: Kelly Price and MCS students devise a plan to create art on one of the public pianos. Photo courtesy MCS.

MUSIC

Celebrating the past — and the future

Planned renovations will establish the Music Conservatory of Sandpoint’s building as a center of art and music

By Ben Olson Reader Staff A year ago, on Aug. 12, the staff at the Music Conservatory of Sandpoint took the first step of many toward establishing itself as an epicenter of art and music when organizers purchased the building at 110 Main St. in downtown Sandpoint.

Prior to the purchase, MCS rented the historic site on the corner of Second Avenue and Main Street for a decade. The building has a storied history: as a former site of City Hall, a fire station, a police department and even a jail.

MCS Executive Director Karin Wedemeyer said it is exactly this historic significance that has inspired renovation plans to transform the building and street-side gathering space into an interactive art/music space and recital hall.

“We want to create a place of interactivity and cultural participation,” Wedemeyer told the Reader.

MCS has divided the transformation into three potential phases, with Kris Contor from Sandpoint’s Architecture 311.5 firm taking the helm for designing and planning.

Phase 1 will focus on opening and replacing the sliding garage doors, where fire engines once entered and exited the building for emergency calls.

“The original doors were actually swinging doors,” Contor told the Reader. “It used to house horse-drawn fire wagons. There was a stable in there and stalls, too.”

Once opened, the doors will provide sidewalk access for the Little Carnegie concert hall, which is also slated to be revamped.

“The space will become mixed use, including the gallery and recital space so people can interact, hear students perform and rehearse, as well as come inside to see the beautiful artwork,” Wedemeyer said.

Contor said Phase 1 would involve not just the fire doors, but removing a suspended ceiling and ductwork above it, as well as electrical and lighting maintenance. The floor will also need to be leveled and brought up.

Wedemeyer said the first phase

This week’s RLW by Lyndsie Kiebert

READ

...the school reopening guidelines.

It’s easy to get caught up in the second-hand chatter of “teachers will be required to do this, students will be expected to do that,” but nothing can replace actually sitting down and reading through the Lake Pend Oreille School District’s COVID-19 reopening plan website: covid.lposd.org. Knowledge is power, and rumors do no one any good.

LISTEN

is scheduled to begin as soon as funding is secured. She estimates it will take about $50,000 to open the doors and remove the ceiling and another $100,000 to remodel the Little Carnegie Hall space.

As soon as Phase 1 is complete, Wedemeyer said MCS will slowly enter Phases 2 and 3.

Phase 2 will see a renovation of the internal areas, including office space, with an emphasis on preserving the historical elements.

“The outside of the building is still historically significant, but there’s very little of the inside that has any historical significance,” Contor said. “The new doors that will be installed will be more representative to the historic doors to the building. We’re trying to be careful about maintaining the historical facade of the building.”

“Everything original to the building we are going to preserve,” Wedemeyer added. “One of our main visions is to protect this historic building and also for the community to add as many features of its past as possible.”

Phase 2 will also likely see renovation to upstairs office spaces, as well as redoing the outdoor portal and front entryway.

Wedemeyer said the restoration of the historic bell tower will likely be saved for Phase 3. MCS plans to preserve its architectural integrity while opening up the space for an exciting new development.

“We will create a rooftop performance space,” she said. “Under

the bell tower would be a little stage.”

To accomplish this goal during Phase 3, MCS will need to install an elevator. They also plan to install solar panels and a rooftop garden to make this unique space a reality.

Wedemeyer said elements like solar panels are in line with MCS’s plan to embrace green technology.

“It’s really important for me that the building is as green as possible,” she said. “We’re wanting to address how we can turn this building into a zero carbon footprint building with solar.”

As for the funding, Wedermeyer said, “We are working with some organizations who are looking to fund us opening the doors — that’s the first step. …

“It’s a really exciting plan,” she added. “Any time we can create anticipation and hope, it will help us through difficult times.

Canadian dream pop outfit Men I Trust has been in my constant listening rotation as of late. The three-piece band does all of its own recording, mixing and mastering to create a sound that’s chill, but has an underlying groove. Using guitars, synth and easygoing drums, Men I Trust is gradually carving out its own space in the ethereal shoegaze music scene.

WATCH

Top: An artistic rendering of the proposed renovations to the fire doors at the MCS building. Image courtesy Architecture 311.5.

Middle: An undated photo of a horse-drawn fire wagon in Sandpoint.

Bottom: The 110 Main St. building under construction. Middle and bottom photos courtesy Bonner County History Museum.

I’ve been pleasantly surprised

by BBC production Call The Midwife. The show, based on the memoirs of an English midwife working in 1950s East End London, is a never-ending stream of babies being born and the societal expectations and downfalls that come with such a major event.

The characters — from the midwives to the nuns to the city’s most impoverished citizens — light up the screen in this sobering but uplifting show.

And we are in difficult times, so we hope this is something for people to look forward to.”

To learn more, or to donate toward MCS’s renovation plans, visit sandpointconservatory.org.

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BACK OF THE BOOK The

From Northern Idaho News, August 26, 1930

INDIANS ATTRACT HUNDREDS HERE ESTIMATED 1500 INDIANS ENCAMPED IN HUMBIRD PARK FOR ANNUAL POWWOW AND GAMES – LIKELY TO BE THE LAST ONE

The annual encampment of Indians at the field north of Humbird park has more Indians in attendance this year than ever before, it being estimated that over 1500 are encamped there, but despite this they are very dissatisfied and may not come here again next year.

Kneas Granjo of Arlee, Mont., chief of the Flathead Indians, who was at the head of the encampment last year and again this year, says the Indians are dissatisfied because of the proximity of the carnival and he also says there is dissension among the chiefs of the different tribes, some wanting the encampment to be run open for gambling and others only partially so.

Orders were given Saturday night that the stick game would have to close at two in the morning instead of running all night as had been the custom heretofore, and this made the Flathead and British Columbia Indians sore, as they had been in the habit of playing all night long.

Then, too, there has been dissension among the chiefs as to the concessions on the ground, some wanting more than there is and others wanting all but a few necessary ones cut out.

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Late Night Buddhist

Do ya wanna be right, or do ya wanna be happy?

By Scott Taylor Reader Columnist You may have heard the above question posed by one spouse to another amid a relationship spat (in the standard joke it applies to the husband, who learns the correct response in any argument is “Yes Dear, whatever you say, Dear”).

There are many hills on which one may choose to die, but most of those hills, in retrospect, turn out to be unworthy of our martyrdom. If we choose to walk a path that leads to happiness for ourselves and others, there are times when restraint and calm acceptance are the steps to take.

As a teacher and parent I used to coach and umpire high school, junior high and youth league baseball and softball. In my capacity as an ump, I had to learn the rule book thoroughly (not that my dad, a semipro baseball player who played in Japan, hadn’t already drilled it into me). But knowing the rules inside and out doesn’t necessarily translate into winning every argument that arises.

After one Babe Ruth League game I had called behind the plate, an acquaintance asked, “How do you maintain your composure when people are sitting behind you calling you names, yelling and complaining, and coaches are berating you and screaming in your face?”

My simple reply was, “Because I know I’m right.”

But, there were two occasions as a coach when knowing I was right — and ev-

STR8TS Solution

eryone else on the field and in the stands was wrong — didn’t do any good, and the frustration I felt led to a state of mind that definitely wasn’t happy.

In one instance, during a summer-league softball game, there was a collision involving my team’s second baseman, who was attempting to field a grounder, and the runner who was moving toward second base. Cries of “Interference!” went up from the stands and the teenage umpire, succumbing to the suggestion, agreed. So did I. But to my astonishment, rather than calling the runner “out,” she awarded the runner second base, and the crowd applauded.

Being that I was apparently the only one in the park who knew the rule, and was outnumbered 60-to-1, no amount of explaining the difference between interference and obstruction had any effect and I returned to the dugout, defeated by majority rule.

In another episode during a high-school baseball regional playoff game (the stakes being ostensibly higher than a summer game for 11-year-olds), our opponents pulled the old “hidden ball trick” and picked our potential game-tying runner off of second base.

I explained (OK, argued) to the base ump that, first of all, after a timeout was called and the meeting on the mound had ended, the pitcher hadn’t stepped on the pitching rubber nor had the plate ump signaled the ball in play, therefore “time” was still “out” and the runner couldn’t be tagged out; and, secondly, if anyone wanted to claim that “time” was “in,” then the pitcher was guilty of a balk because he straddled the rubber and looked in at his catcher for a signal without the ball in his possession.

I knew I had him, even offered to show

him the rule book (not really a good tactic to pull when he’s standing in full display of everyone on the middle of the diamond), but he refused to budge. I could see on the plate ump’s face he knew I was right but wasn’t going to overrule his crewmate. We lost the game and I spent a few days in a frustrated snit (though the base ump did call me at school the next day and admit I was right).

So, when we come to that impasse — whether in a personal interaction, in public or online — we can make a decision.

Whether we listen to The Who sing, “The kids couldn’t hurt Jack/ they tried and tried and tried/ …/ But they couldn’t stop Jack, or the waters lapping/ And they couldn’t prevent Jack from being happy,” or Tom Petty vowing, “You can stand me up at the gates of Hell/ but I won’t back down,” we can consider whether it’s worth our (or someone else’s) happiness to continue the fight. Choose happy!

Crossword Solution

Sudoku Solution Here’s a good trick: Get a job as a judge at the Olympics.

Then, if some guy sets a world record, pretend that you didn’t see it and go, “Okay, is everybody ready to start now?”

By Bill Borders

CROSSWORD

Copyright www.mirroreyes.com

Laughing Matter

Solution on page 22

Solution on page 22

ACROSS

rodomontade

Woorf tdhe Week

/rod-uh-mon-TEYD/

[noun] 1. vainglorious boasting or bragging; pretentious, blustering talk.

“If you can sift through the rodomontade, some of his speech was worth listening to.”

Corrections: None this week! -BO

1. Tablet 5. Offensively curious 10. Chop finely 14. Dwarf buffalo 15. Comment to the audience 16. A single time 17. Sore throat 19. Render unconscious 20. Terminate 21. Excrete 22. List components 23. Yearner 25. More peculiar 27. Foot 28. Sweetheart 31. Radiant 34. Entices 60. As well 35. Petroleum 61. Kitty (poker) 36. Young sheep 62. Small songbirds 37. Disorderly revelry 63. T T T T 38. Dogfish 39. East southeast 40. A type of necklace DOWN 41. Shoemaker’s awl 42. Propensity 1. Went white 44. Vigor 2. Absurd 45. Decease 3. Nobles 46. Blessing 4. Nonclerical 50. Graves 5. Hen-pecked 52. Produce a literary work 6. Willow 54. Twosome 7. Seats oneself 55. Eye layer 8. An article of opinion 56. Finch-like bird 9. Aye 58. Focusing glass 10. Lodge 59. Cowboy movie

Solution on page 22 11. Foyers 12. Pond gunk 13. Female chickens 18. Geeky 22. Midmonth date 24. Poetic foot 26. Responsibility 28. Dawdle 29. 8 in Roman numerals 30. Dash 31. Decay from overripening 32. Convenience 33. Revision 34. Swimwear 37. Fender blemish 38. Charity

40. Legumes 41. Duck down 43. Demean 44. They cast ballots 46. Donated 47. Ancient Roman magistrate 48. Medical professional 49. Blockheads 50. A city in western Russia 51. Baking appliance 53. Be worthy of 56. Expression of surprised admiration 57. Louisville Slugger August 20, 2020 /

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