Sandpoint council to host info workshop on Hwy. 2 ‘Couplet’ concept March 15

By Zach Hagadone Reader Staff

City Hall will again address the potential redevelopment of a portion of U.S. Highway 2 as it moves east and west through Sandpoint, this time in an informational workshop scheduled for the regular Wednesday, March 15 meeting of the City Council. The meeting starts at 5:30 p.m. and will take place in the Sandpoint City Council chambers (1123 Lake St.).

Members of the council voted Feb. 15 to undertake the workshop, which Sandpoint City Administrator Jennifer Stapleton said would be intended to inform councilors of the bigger picture surrounding the concept for “the Couplet,” or “East-West Connection,” as it is sometimes called.

“These concepts were all developed together. What is happening on one section of roadway is affecting others,” she said at the Feb. 15 meeting, adding later, “I think the workshop will help you understand how all these things are layered on.”

The concept includes widening U.S. 2 to a five-lane signalized intersection replacing the current crossing at Boyer. In addition, the city envisioned creating a point of access off U.S. 2 to South Boyer Avenue in order to provide a north-south connec- tion across the highway. However, that route would run directly through the property currently home to Dub’s Drive-in.

Councilors on Feb. 1 approved the purchase of the Dub’s property for $380,000, which it will lease back to current owners Marty and Jeralyn Mire, who plan to retire, then sublease the property to new owners who will operate the business at its current location until such time as the city needs to use the property.

According to the design, Pine Street would remain two-way from U.S. 2 to Fifth Avenue, with a signal placed at Pine and Fifth. Northbound traffic would travel on Fifth, which would be converted to one-way. Southbound traffic accessing U.S. 2 would need to exit the intersection at Fifth and Cedar and take a new two-lane, one-way route — one half of the “Couplet” — travel- you get into all the time.”

Omodt moved to amend the motion, sending it to county attorney Bill Wilson to determine if such a town hall could be conducted in compliance with meeting laws and what infrastructure would be required, to which Bradshaw and Omodt voted “yes” and Williams voted “no.”

Omodt also addressed the issue of training for boards, commissions and committees, which he presented with material he gathered following a recent meeting of the Idaho Association of Counties in Boise.

Specifically referring to the widespread interest in the Fair Board, Omodt said there are statutory limitations on how the county can interact with its sub-agencies and how those bodies must conduct themselves — much of that including compliance with record keeping, reporting from staff and chairpersons, accessibility requirements for meetings, and other legal mandates related to personnel matters and privacy.

Ensuring those rules are fol- lowed is a matter of minimizing legal risk, which is especially critical as Bonner County is self-insured, rather than participating in the Idaho Counties Risk Management Program — which private attorney Ford Elsaesser, Prosecuting Attorney Lewis Marshall and County Clerk Mike Rosedale all said the county should rejoin during a discussion about receiving pro bono analysis and advice from Elsaesser about how much the county pays in fees to outside law firms in civil litigation.

(A motion to retain Elsaesser on ing along the Sandpoint-Dover pathway to the envisioned intersection east of Boyer and Pine, where it would then join U.S. 2.

Opposition to the concept has come from a number of residents and former city officials, who liken it to “the Curve,” which was a similar project brought by the Idaho Transportation Department in 2011, but which the city rejected in 2013 based on impacts to surrounding businesses as well an advisory basis died without a second.)

Finally, both the disposition of the fairgrounds and the county’s legal exposure rounded out the public portion of the meeting — before commissioners went into executive session — when Omodt moved and Bradshaw seconded to go forward with the boundary line adjustment by Sewell and Associates, paid for with $25,000 in grant monies.

Williams again opposed the agenda item, reiterating, “I hold that this is not appropriate to as safety concerns. discuss now,” because she said it hadn’t been properly noticed.

The public will be invited to attend the workshop, and according to an email March 8 from Mayor Shelby Rognstad, contrary to previous statements, members of the community will be given the opportunity to ask questions.

“This is exactly a re-do of what happened with the ice rink,” she said, adding later that she wouldn’t be surprised to see Wheeler “go straight to the AG” over the issue.

“If this moves forward because of a majority vote, it is clear that we are accepting risk, not mitigating risk,” she said.

The item was approved with “yes” votes from Bradshaw and Omodt.