Civility at public meetings…

Dear editor, Previous to the Idaho Republican Party this year and their county central committees, the only political parties I am aware of that enforced adhering to their platforms were communist — in Russia, China and North Korea. Platforms here used to be aspirational: a guide for voters, candidates and electeds for generally what to expect. Censuring and excluding some electeds from the party is alarming.

An elected person in the U.S. swears to uphold the laws and the Constitution. Not any party. Whole libraries exist interpreting the Constitution. Perhaps the BCRCC should consult nationally noted constitutional scholars before rendering judgment? Please remember: If it looks simple, you almost surely don’t have all the needed information.

Apparently the BCRCC is concerned because public comment is not currently allowed at the County Commission (BOCC) meetings. But issues should be the focus of comments, not personal attacks. We have plenty of important issues. Constructive comments are the most effective.

Commissioners cannot enforce the ordinance requiring civility. They aren’t bouncers. So their option is to eliminate the comments/ attacks. Enforcement is the duty of the sheriff and prosecutor.

BCRCC: Please ask these gentlemen to enforce the ordinance. Sandpoint police do that for their City Council. We elect the sheriff and prosecutor to enforce the laws, including civility at public meetings. I used to attend BOCC meetings but today I’m among those intimidated to attend, and so our freedom is being trampled. I would appreciate your constructive help in changing this.

Thank you.

Molly O’Reilly

Sandpoint Dear editor,

For the record, I 100% support new features being added to the bike-skills area in Travers Park and appreciate Pend Oreille Peddler’s efforts, for which I’m a member.

And I’m pleased Councilman Welker reported in his letter to the editors that no trees will be cut down for this project. However, regarding the trees surrounding the playground area, the councilman played dodgy with the truth.

City Council voted essentially to destroy 10 healthy trees when they decided a large Tencel-covered structure “designed for tennis and pickleball” (their words) will take the playground’s location. Our community’s initial investment, plus 30-years of paying Parks Department employees to care for these trees, gets wiped out. Easy to say “mature trees will be replanted,” except it’s not possible to successfully transplant 50-foot-tall trees like the red oak or trees with 75-foot-circumference trunks like the willow standing next to the playground.

On the heels of a lofty proclamation praising the value of trees at a Council meeting, city officials are being hypocrites for not making a better, environmentally sound decision. Saving these beautiful mature trees should be a priority considering their carbon sequestration values and their cooling benefits for a public park with rising summer heat.

Truthfully, it’s not too late to choose instead to add more features to the sturdy existing equipment and build their large, tall structure in a treeless area of the park. Besides, for numerous safety reasons, it’s poor site-planning to obstruct an open view into the kids’ bike-skills park with a big building.

And yes, I support the addition of a splash pad for our kids’ summer play — especially because this Council has refused to tackle the question, “How does a 10-year old ride their bike safely to City Beach?” for those living in this northeast area of town.

Rebecca Holland Sandpoint

in water where diquat was used.

According to the private spray applicator who was hired by the marina and residents of Dover, there are herbicide-free options but they “cost more.” Although we may not all agree about all local issues, aren’t we as a community all concerned about having clean water? Many of us depend on our lake for drinking water. Swimming and fishing and other water sports abound here. I know that there are many others that feel as concerned about being exposed to poisons as I am. Let’s form a coalition!

This is a call to action before more spraying is done and there is more spraying planned for next week! Starting on Aug. 8, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is planning on spraying glyphosate in six locations! Yes, the same poisonous herbicide that is causing so many health issues that Bayer/Monsanto is paying out over $11 billion in damages! The sign with more details is hanging in front of Winter Ridge.

Please join me in calling Jeremey Varley with the Idaho Department of Agriculture to register a complaint at 208-332-8667.

Meryl Kastin and neighbors Sandpoint

Dear editor,

Thanks to Lauran Reichenbach for reporting the shenanigans of the Bonner County Republican Party Central Committee (BCRCC). (Daily Bee, “BCRCC: Pair falling short in representing party,” July 29).

The BRCC has “empowered itself” to remove elected Republicans they disagree with from the party. This means the BRCC is deciding who can run in their primary — any Republican they don’t like doesn’t get on the ballot.

I don’t get to vote on who they will kick out.

When voters question the conduct of elected officials, we can vote them out in elections — like the one in West Bonner County this month to recall two school board members. The voters will get to decide this one, not the BCRCC.

The BCRCC has much more power than I do. They are silencing me and you with their shenanigans, no matter which party you belong to, or none.

Nancy Gerth Sagle

Dear editor,

Our lake was sprayed with an aquatic herbicide for invasive plants in several locations, all of which are not very far from public swimming and fishing areas as well as home for ducks and other wildlife. Just by chance, I became aware of spraying at Dover Bay Marina, right next to the Dover City Park and Beach, as well as the surrounding private sloughs, at the end of June.

The chemical being used, diquat, has already been banned in Europe since 2018 due to concerns about its effects on people and birds. In a recent phone conversation, a DEQ employee stated that he wouldn’t swim

At present only Republicans can vote in their primaries. Independents and Democratic voters have already lost the choice to decide who goes on the ballot.

Now, even Republicans won’t get to decide who runs — Republican voices will not be heard in their own primary!

It’s not technically illegal — a party is not regulated by the Constitution. But citizens already exercise their right to an equal voice and an equal choice by evaluating our elected officials by voting. I lose those rights when one political party preempts them.

Since I am not a BCRCC member,

Dear editor,

In reading about the proposed Providence subdivision, I see that the city of Sandpoint has given a “will serve” letter to the developer for water. This is in direct opposition to what the city of Sandpoint’s current Comprehensive Plan states (CD-2, Policy E): Water service is only to be extended to development within urban and incorporated areas.

The State Land Use Act also discourages this kind of extension of service. So why did the city provide a “will serve” letter to a development that is not within the city limits of Kootenai but rather within their ACI? Under what authority was that water service offered up? And at a time, according to Mayor Rognstad in a recent KRFY interview, when volume capacity and flow are already challenged in that area?

It makes no sense to me and the city would be wise to withdraw that “will serve” letter.

Carrie Logan Sandpoint

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By Emily Erickson Reader Columnist