Dock expansion mulled on Pend Oreille River

SAGLE — The Idaho Department of Lands is considering a plan to expand dock space and moorage at a restaurant and hotel at the south end of the Long Bridge on U.S. Highway 95.

Owners of the Landing and Lodge at Sandpoint want to add to existing docks and install mooring buoys on the Pend Oreille River.

Glenn Harvey and Leslie Wood want to add 70 feet to the dock system serving the restaurant and 29 feet to the docks utilized by the hotel, according to Lisa Ailport, a land use planner representing the business owners.

The lands department on Thursday conducted a lightly attended and brief public hearing in which support and concerns were both voiced.

Patricia Sterling, an adjacent landowner, was troubled by the prospect of more litter, illegal sewage tank discharges by boaters and noxious weeds. She also questioned the buoys’ proximity to a nesting platform frequented by waterfowl and osprey.

Sterling also considered the dock expansion contrary to the Southside Water & Sewer District’s building moratorium. The moratorium was implemented in 2004 because the district’s treatment system reached capacity.

“This really looks like an expansion to (an upland land) use,” said Sterling.

The docks, however, are not considered buildings under Bonner County code and would not require a building location permit, Ailport said. The owners have also pledged to be vigilant in collecting litter and keeping boaters from emptying their waste tanks, she added.

Additionally, owners plan to install signs reminding boaters the area is a no-wake zone. No-wake zones in Bonner County extend 200 feet from shore and structures.

The location of the buoys has not been determined, although Ailport said construction work will be timed to avoid disturbing nesting.

Three people, including Harvey, spoke in favor of the expansion. Lonnie Brew said boat parking is in too short a supply at the business and Lou Goodness, who used to live on the site the hotel now occupies, said he harbored similar concerns before the restaurant’s docks were put in. But those concerns turned out to be unfounded, Goodness said.

“I don’t think she’ll find any great problems,” he said.

Lands officials anticipate making a decision on the proposal within the next 30 days.