BOCC appoints new zoning commissioner

SANDPOINT — The Bonner County Board of Commissioners appointed Kevin Burkamp to the Bonner County Zoning Commission at a Nov. 5 business meeting.

During public comment, community members raised several concerns regarding Burkamp’s appointment, with most of the concerns centered around the board’s decision to appoint another real estate agent to the zoning commission.

In Burkamp’s application for the commission, he said that he has worked as a local real estate agent in Idaho for several years but lists his current occupation as commercial construction plumbing with Gold Seal Plumbing, a company based in Spokane Valley, Washington.

Board Chair Asia Williams addressed the concerns over Burkamp’s background in real estate.

“I can't say, ‘No, you're a Realtor, you cannot sit on a board,’” Williams said. “But what I can do is say, ‘Are we evenly balanced throughout different backgrounds so that we get the best type of commission?’ This person's application had other jobs listed. They did say that they had an active license, but it wasn't their active vocation.”

One community member also noted that Burkamp had donated to Commissioner Ron Korn’s campaign for District 3 commissioner in 2022 and asked that Korn recuse himself from voting on Burkamp’s appointment.

Korn chose not to recuse himself.

“I'm not sure that I should recuse myself from voting, since I'm not gaining anything from any person by (them) sitting on that zoning commission board,” Korn said.

Concerns were also raised as to Burkamp’s local status, with one community member saying they were concerned that the phone numbers they found when researching Burkamp were mostly based in Pennsylvania.

Williams said Burkamp had been a resident of Bonner County the longest out of the eight people who applied. According to his application, Burkamp has been a resident of Bonner County for nine years.

Williams also said that the commissioners took into account maintaining an equitable geographic distribution of zoning commissioners in their decision.

The commission already has two members from District 2 and one member from both Districts 1 and 3. Burkamp, who resides in District 1, will help balance the commission’s geographic make-up.

Both Korn and Williams said they were confident that Burkamp was the best and most qualified candidate that applied for the commission.

“This was the best candidate,” Williams said. “Yes, they have a real estate license, but they answered the questions that you all ask of us the best out of the available candidates.”

Williams said that the county does need to review how they fill seats on county commissions. She suggested potentially making the interview process public and reviewing how the county advertises the positions.