2011's wild ride includes controversy, successes

SANDPOINT — From ongoing work on the bypass to county officials’ decision to challenge Fish & Wildlife’s decision on caribou habitat, it’s been a wild ride from start to finish in 2011.

In between, there’s been everything from a battle over funding for the fairgrounds,  museum and extension office to the county’s creation of its Property Rights Council to safeguard property rights.

In addition, there’s a new, free transit system between the cities of Dover, Sandpoint, Ponderay and Kootenai, approved funding for the Sandpoint-to-Kootenai Cutoff Highway 95 project, the purchase of the Pend d’Oreille Bay Trail, work on the Highway 2 “Curve” project and start of the Memorial Field renovation project, Taylor & Sons moving from its downtown location to Ponderay.

You also can’t forget the censure by the Region 1 Republican Central Committee of state Sens. Shawn Keough and Joyce Broadsword for their support of a redistricting proposal, the 100th birthday of the city of Clark Fork, the conviction of Sagle attorney Edgar Steele in the murder-for-hire plot of his wife, Cyndi; the ongoing saga involving renovation of the county’s historic Courthouse building, and much, much more.

Below is a list, in no particular order, of some of the year’s highlights:

Sand Creek Byway

By the end of 2011, the Sand Creek Byway was ahead of schedule, although initial hopes that it would open by year’s end failed to pan out.

As the year ended, crews were busy installing a number of safety features that had to be in place before traffic can start flowing over Sand Creek. The work includes signage and crash impact attenuators.

Parsons and ITD forecast the byway will be open by late spring or early summer, which would still be ahead of the project schedule, which calls for the project to be done in November 2012. Construction on the $98 million project began in 2008.

The amount of fine detail and aesthetic touches could be unmatched compared to other ITD projects. Barbara Babic, the department’s Panhandle spokeswoman, said all projects have a few cosmetic enhancements, but not as many as the bypass.

Lake level fluctuation

A controversial flexible winter power operations plan quietly began with little fanfare in mid-December on Lake Pend Oreille. Under the Bonneville Power Administration plan,  the Albeni Falls Dam is strategically holding back and releasing water from Lake Pend Oreille this winter for power generation.

The lake is being raised and lowered within a 5-foot range during winter to match the demands of power consumers. The elevation changes would be restricted to 6 inches per day. BPA proposed the plan to lessen the need to purchase power on the energy market during periods of high demand.

Although some support the plan because it would hold down energy costs, as the year ended few appeared to be warming up to the plan. It encountered widespread opposition from waterfront landowners who fear their docks will be frozen to the lake and river bottom and become damaged when the lake level is drawn up and the Idaho Department of Fish & Game also raised concerns about increased erosion and diminished wildlife habitat.

In addition, landowners, anglers and resource watchdogs continued to raise objections, concerns and suspicion about the plan to strategically store and release water to maximize the value of the water flowing through the Pend Oreille.

Fairgrounds funding

Many were outraged over a proposal to cut funding to the Bonner County Fair, Bonner County Historical Museum and the University of Idaho Extension office while raising granting employee raises.

In the end, the commissioners adopted a $57.2 million budget — amid some political posturing — that included a tax collection rate increase to 5.94 percent. Officials estimated that landowners could expect to see an increase of about $14 per $100,000 of assessed property value.

While ultimately funding, the commission had considered cuts to the fair, museum and extension, saying even though they supported the institutions, they were non-essential public services that could be alternately sustained through volunteers. Commissioners ultimately decided against the cuts, but it did not rule out future cuts if those operations did not become more self-sustaining.

Highway 95 project

The Idaho Transportation Board accepted Apollo Inc.’s $12.7 million bid in mid-August to reconstruct and widen the highway from Sandpoint through Ponderay — about four months after the project finally got the green-light.

The project will widen the corridor to four lanes separated by a median. A traffic signal will be installed at Bonner Mall Way and a separated pedestrian path will extend from the south end of the project to Bonner Mall Way.

The new configuration will restrict left-hand turning movements except at Bonner Mall Way and Kootenai Cutoff Road. However, Texas turnarounds will be strategically located so motorists and tractor-trailers can double back.

The project was originally conceived in 1987. Right of way was mostly buttoned up by 1999, but the project slipped into limbo in 2003 amid highway funding woes and other factors.

Caribou challenge

In late December, Bonner County commissioners pressed ahead with efforts to challenge the designation of habitat for endangered woodland caribou. In the resolution, the county insisted U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service coordinate with the county regarding habitat designation for endangered caribou.

Commissioners began reaching out to other commissions in the Panhandle, Montana and Washington state in order to build a coalition on the matter. They also expressed hope of support from state lawmakers, agencies and Idaho’s federal delegation.

The challenge followed Fish & Wildlife’s November announcement that it intends to designate 375,562 acres of forest in Bonner, Boundary and Pend Oreille counties habitat for caribou. Fish & Wildlife estimates there are about 46 woodland caribou in the southern Selkirk Mountains.

While supporters say the designation is necessary to save the endangered caribou, opponents contend it will further restrict recreational use of the forest and drive off business.

The agency is accepting public comment on the proposal until Jan. 30, 2012.

Property rights

In a year when several residents faced challenges from federal agencies on land use issues, Bonner County commissioners took a stand for property rights with the creavtion of its Property Rights Council.

Bonner County Commission Chairman Cornel Rasor spearheaded the formation of the council to advise elected officials and departments on matters involving private property rights. The council withstood review from the Idaho Attorney General’s office, which concluded Idaho Code enables counties to create advisory committees such as the Property Rights Council.

The council’s formation came in the wake of two high-profile challenges over wetlands issues involving the Environmental Protection Agency, including one which was accepted for review by the U.S. Supreme Court.

Mike and Chantelle Sackett petitioned for the U.S. Supreme Court review after a series of lower court rulings concerning an EPA determination that federally regulated wetlands are present on their half-acre parcel in a Priest Lake subdivision.

The Sacketts sued EPA over the wetlands determination in U.S. District Court, but a federal judge dismissed the action in 2008 and entered a judgment in favor of EPA. The couple sought redress through the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals last year, but a three-judge panel ruled judicial review is not available.

The Sacketts petitioned the high court to take their case and rule that they have the right to challenge EPA’s wetlands determination.

In the other case, Nordman landowner Jack Barron, 66, and his wife, Jill, were served with a compliance order requiring them to restore wetlands the EPA contends they disturbed. Failure to heed the compliance order invites costly federal penalties.

The compliance order follows Barron’s 2010 acquittal of criminal charges  the year before by the EPA that he placed  fill in wetlands and an unnamed tributary on his land near Lamb Creek.

Barron insists the water on his property is not wetlands, a point which he argues was established at trial. Barron contends water backs up onto his property because of an improperly installed U.S. Forest Service culvert and a permeable road bed that allows stormwater to seep through.

The agency asserts that Barron’s home site development resulted in several violations of the Clean Water Act, the primary federal law protecting water quality. EPA said rock and fill materials were discharged into four acres of wetlands, which drain into Priest Lake.

SPOT launched

After the death of the North Idaho Community Express transit system, the cities of Dover, Sandpoint, Ponderay and Kootenai banded together to build an intercity community busing system.

The summer debut of a four-city fixed-route bus system and better public mobility began as a simple idea by Dover city officials in late 2006. Hard work led the the securing of federal funding  and the Selkirks-Pend Oreille Transit system was on the road in June.

In its first three months, SPOT attracted more than 10,400 riders, which will average out to more than 40,000 per year — “very good (numbers) for communities of this size,” said Clif Warren, Community Transportation Association of Idaho District 1 mobility manager.

Pend d’Oreille Bay Trail

After years of support and dreams, the Pend d’Oreille Bay Trail became a reality in September when the Sandpoint City Council voted to spend $400,000 to buy the first parcel of the proposed trail from the Hall family.

According to the acquisition plan, Sandpoint will buy the first two parcels of land for $400,000 apiece plus $10,000 for a railroad lease. Ponderay will forward another $400,000 in the third year for another parcel, while the Friends of the Pend d’Oreille Trail will privately raise the final $370,000 to complete the arrangement.

While the Ponderay City Council has expressed support for the trail, members haven’t voted to fund the project. The decision to hold off on funding came on the heels of substantial community debate over the viability of the trail project during a recession. That dialogue also was reflected in the public commentary that preceded council debate. Trail supporters cited the danger of losing the opportunity by backing out of the deal.

Memorial Field

By the end of the football season, Sandpoint High School athletes were playing under new lights — the first phase of a multi-year renovation project at Memorial Field.

When the community learned the aging grandstands and field complex could be condemned, The Friends of Memorial Field was formed to transform the stadium into a dream facility.

The group approached the community with three options for a Memorial Field upgrade, holding a total of four forums and garnering input from than 200 people before selecting the final option several months later.

The group — borrowing a chapter from the Panida Theater’s successful drive to save downtown Sandpoint’s historic performing arts venue and movie house — mounted their first phase of fundraising activities this summer, selling engraved bricks to raise money for the project.

Friends of Memorial Field hopes to finish the entire project, including the grandstands, by the year 2016.

Curve option approved

Months of meetings and debate led the the selection of a “mini-couplet” option for a connector route to divert Highway 2 traffic between Lake and Cedar streets.

Known as “the Curve,” officials said the Highway 2 bypass project will coordinate with the U.S. 95 bypass, allowing ITD to relinquish control of downtown streets back to the city. Once the downtown streets are back in city control, officials said the project will allow a safer and more pleasant experience for all residents — pedestrians, bicyclists and drivers.

Sandpoint named most beautiful small town

While locals already know they live in one of the most beautiful places on earth, proof that the rest of the nation is catching on came as Sandpoint was named the most beautiful small town in America by USA Today and Rand McNally.

Sandpoint won the day against much larger competitors Coral Gables, Fla., Marco Island, Fla., Franklin, Tenn., Baker City, Ore., and Pacifica, Calif. The contest defined “small town” as a population of 150,000 or less.

In voting for Sandpoint, contest judges Daniel and JoAnne Scaub said the community “wasn’t just a  ‘drive through and let’s stop here’ place. Its quaint downtown shops and restaurants welcomed us in, and its landscape kept us in awe.”

The contest victory brought along a slew of publicity with a page in both the upcoming Rand McNally atlas and an issue of USA Today dedicated to the town. An hour-long Travel Channel special also featured contest winners.

Edgar Steele convicted

Sagle attorney Edgar J. Steele was sentenced to 50 years in prison after his conviction for his role in a murder-for-hire plot against his wife of 26 years, Cyndi Steele.

Steele was found guilty after a seven-day trial in U.S. District Court in Boise on charges of use of interstate commerce facilities (roads and highways) in the commission of murder-for-hire; possession of a destructive device in relation to a crime of violence; use of explosive material to commit a federal felony; and tampering with a victim.

The jury decided Steele hired his handyman, 50-year-old Larry Fairfax, also of Sagle, to kill his wife by either bombing her vehicle, driving her off the road, or “guns blazing.” Fairfax attached a pipe bomb to her vehicle, which was discovered a couple weeks later during an oil change in Coeur d’Alene.

Steele, 66,  has represented high-profile clients like the Aryan Nations’ onetime leader Richard Butler during the 2000 trial that bankrupted the hate group. During the trial, he claimed he had been falsely targeted by the government because of his advocacy of freedom of speech rights for politically incorrect clients.

Fairfax was sentenced in mid-May to 27 months in prison with credit for time served for his role in the plot.

Taylor & Sons opens in new location

After several decades anchoring downtown Sandpoint, Taylor & Sons moved into its new, environmentally friendly building on Highway 95 a few miles north to Ponderay.

The decision to move Taylor & Sons Chevrolet from Cedar Street to a three-plus-acre lot north of town was a convergence of macro-economic forces and sweeping changes in the automotive industry. 

That reality was made painfully apparent starting in 2008, when the federal government began what ended up as a $25 billion safety net to pull financially troubled automakers back from the brink under the umbrella of an overall, $700 billion stimulus plan. In the midst of that restructuring, Taylor-Parker lost its Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep dealerships but kept its Chevrolet franchise. However, it was G.M.’s updated requirements for the physical facilities meant the two-acre lot in downtown Sandpoint — which had been in constant use for more than 80 years and seen a few major renovations — went far beyond what the existing facility could provide.

The lot would eventually be purchased by Bonner General Hospital, which is evaluating the property to help address community health needs and its own existing space issues.

Senators cesured by Region 1 RCC

Saying their actions in a redistricting proposal were detrimental to the party, the Region 1 Republican Central Committee approved a “no confidence” vote in mid-July against Sens. Shawn Keough and Joyce Broadsword.

In a letter of censure, Region 1 RCC Chairman John Cross said the pair’s action demonstrated that they did not care about constituents and were not acting in their best interests when they submitted the redistricting plan. Instead, the RCC claimed the pair used their political positions to further personal agendas and promote the interests of the opposing political party.

The motion, which was brought by Donna Capurso, chair of Boundary County Republican Central Committee, also claims Broadsword and Keough purposely attempted to cause electoral runoffs between conservative legislators in order to further a progressive agenda. The censure was unanimously approved by the committee in a voice vote with Bonner County RCC member Cornel Rasor abstaining.

The vote came as a “sad surprise,” said Keough at the time, who learned about it informally through phone calls and emails after the vote. It wasn’t until a few days later that she and Broadsword received official notice.

“I’m saddened that some of our fellow Republicans need to curtail our freedom of speech and further saddened that they would condemn us for representing our district,” she said. “It definitely came as a surprise to us.”

Commission seeks mediation

Bonner County commissioners turned to mediation in mid-October to settle disputes among the board members followed the removal of Commissioner Lewis Rich as chairman. Commissioner Mike Nielsen moved to appoint Commissioner Cornel Rasor as chairman and Rasor seconded.

Tension between Rich and Nielsen were little evident at board meetings until they took up the budget and sought proposals for a new health insurance brokers.

Nielsen and Rich have clashed on a number of issues including the county’s health insurance, pay raises for the sheriff and deputies and adoption of the county’s $57 million budget. Rasor said he has no angst toward his colleagues on the board but is taking part in mediation anyway.

Big bears were big news

First a homeowner in Porthill, at the U.S.-Canada border, shot and killed a 2-year-old male grizzly on his property on May 8 and was charged in U.S. District Court in Coeur d’Alene.

The case drew national attention as gun enthusiasts rushed to the defense of Jeremy M. Hill, who said he was trying to defend his family when a mother grizzly and two offspring wandered onto his property.

In September, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, in Boise, dismissed the criminal charge. Hill agreed that under provisions of the Endangered Species Act and related regulations, he committed a violation. He paid a $1,000 fine.

U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced that dismissal of the criminal charge in favor of the citation was based in part on Hill’s prompt notification of his actions to state wildlife officials.

Then, on Sept. 16, a black bear hunter was thought to have been mauled by a wounded grizzly, before it turned out the hunter was shot and killed by his partner who was trying to protect him.

Steve Stevenson, 39, of Winnemucca, Nev., died. Ty Bell, 20, also of Winnemucca, wounded the grizzly, thinking it was a black bear.

Bell and Stevenson followed a blood trail into a thick, brushy area where the bear turned on them at close quarters.

The two hunters were in the remote, rugged Purcell Mountains that straddle northeastern Idaho and northwestern Montana.

A forensic study of blood on the bullet that killed Stevenson revealed it initially struck the grizzly. The bear also was killed.

Clark Fork turns 100

It was a day of conversation and celebration as the city of Clark Fork turned 100 years old.

Children played tag on the lawn. Across the way the ting of a blacksmith’s hammer rang across the field. Families leaned back on blankets or lawn chairs and quiet conversation hummed here and there.

If it weren’t for touches of modern technology, such as a free WiFi booth, the community vibe to Clark Fork day-long centennial celebration would not be out of place at the Sunday afternoon picnics held 100 years ago.

And that is just the way the community wanted, organizers said. The city’s history was highlighted with displays at the local library and senior center and attractions featured a combination of the old-fashioned and cutting-edge.

“Our idea was to include things from both the past and the future,” event coordinator Roger Anderson said at the time. “We kind of have a smattering of both at the celebration.”

Troubles beset Dover Bridge project

Before work on the new bridge started in 2009, coming up with the $21.5 million in funding was perceived as the Dover Bridge project’s biggest challenge. But building the span has been fraught with headaches.

There were problems getting some of the piling to bite into bedrock, girders from Oklahoma arrived behind schedule and it was discovered anchor bolts in bridge piers had been installed at too shallow of a depth, which required a corrective action plan.

The Idaho Transportation Department finally hired Janod Rock Remediation in late November to stabilize the slope with a series of anchors, rock bolts and wire mesh, a project that was slated for completion by late December.

Asbestos, cost overruns delay courthouse project

Extensive renovations of Bonner County’s century-old courthouse continued to be hit by delays and snags, delaying a move back into the facility until July.

In late December, contractor Ginno Construction put the finishing touches on a temporary roof to allow crew to work inside the building without having to contend with snow and ice as well as prevent moisture from damaging the interior work that’s already been done.

The project has been beset by the discovery of asbestos and costly change orders due to the structure’s age.

Asbestos removal has been an issue throughout the courthouse remodeling project, although it’s been dealt with in phases and where construction is occurring. The county commission finally was forced to abate asbestos and vermiculite in one fell swoop to take advantage of economy of scale and save time.

From having to replace a substandard electrical system array to the need to reinforce the ceiling in courtrooms, change orders have proved costly — adding significantly to the bottom line.