Make road use agreements, standards mandatory

Maintenance of Baldy Mountain Road is a classic example of numerous "private roads without any standards" that our commissioners have favored developers with over these past years. The approvals are a "gift of reduced costs" to the developer and a guaranteed higher cost to the property owner whenever road standards and accessibility issues rear their heads. We have too many private roads now that fire, medical emergency and school buses will never be able to access.

What should the county have done as a very simple act to have solved the Baldy Mountain fiasco from the "get-go"? Every subdivision and/or development approval on Baldy Mountain should have had a simple road use agreement applicable to every lot approved with the developer responsible for a "one lot share" until every lot is sold. Even a private road in a single lot or acreage should be subject to the same road use agreement in case the acreage is divided later.

If this simple act had been followed, every private road would have maintenance and snow removal money equally shared by all.

Every Bonner County commissioner and county attorney's action over the years was willfully and purposely taken to cause financial damages to private road residents. A private road is private but could have been made public access acceptable with a road use agreement. I would vote for personal financial accountability from every commissioner, and county attorney right along with the county that approved a "private road" agreement without some standards or a road use agreement.

KENNETH CHATWIN

Sandpoint