Council votes to reimburse for sidewalks

SANDPOINT - The Sandpoint City Council took steps to finally rid itself of the 2008 Local Improvement District Wednesday when it voted to reimburse eight residents who built sidewalks before the ordinance was voted down.

Questions about the legality of using public funds to pay for the sidewalks will keep the property owners from seeing any money until the Idaho Attorney General's office gives its opinion on the matter, but the vote is a clear victory for the property owners who filed claims against the city.

The reimbursement issue came to the forefront in March when the council opted not to pass the LID. The controversial ordinance would have required 260 residents to build sidewalks on their property or pay the city to do it for them.

After receiving a May 2007 letter from the city suggesting it would be more cost effective to build the sidewalks before the ordinance came to vote, 40 of the 260 affected homeowners heeded the city's advice and installed the sidewalks. When the LID was shot down, some of those 40 homeowners demanded the city reimburse them the money they spent, arguing that the letter was misleading and failed to explain that the LID was not guaranteed to pass.

The reimbursement process, which has been a constant on the council's agenda for months, was complicated further when Councilwoman Helen Newton discovered that Idaho Code automatically rejects claims made 180 days after the claim arose.

Determining when the claims arose - either at the time the sidewalks were built or when the LID was voted down - has been up for debate. If the council decided that the claims arose when residents put in their sidewalks, none would be eligible for reimbursement. If they agreed that the claims arose when the LID was voted down, all 40 would be eligible.

Speaking before the council on Wednesday, many of the claimants made a last push to convince the council that the claims came about when the LID failed.

“The damage on this claim didn't occur until the LID was voted down,” said Michael Hoffman. “Why would anyone file a claim prior to the LID being abandoned?”

Chris Gooley echoed that sentiment.

“We're not starting from when we replaced the sidewalks, we're starting from when the LID was abandoned,” Gooley said.

In the end, the council agreed with Gooley and Hoffman, voting 3-2 to reimburse all eight residents. The eight claims will cost the city $17,583, and that number could end up surpassing $100,000 if the rest of the 40 homeowners come forward with claims.

Councilmen John Reuter and Stephen Snedden cast the dissenting votes. Snedden questioned the legality of the claims, while Reuter argued that the council should heed the advice of city attorney Will Herrington, who has repeatedly advised against awarding the claims.

Councilman Doug Hawkins Jr, who spearheaded the reimbursement plan, was absent from the meeting.