SilverWing files suit against county
SANDPOINT — The developers of a fly-in housing development at Sandpoint Airport are suing Bonner County, claiming unfair dealings and unequal treatment.
SilverWing at Sandpoint alleges county officials were not forthright about their intentions to relocate a runway and are trying to snuff a long-standing through-the-fence access agreement.
SilverWing filed suit in 1st District Court on May 11. Causes of action include breaching a covenant of good-faith dealings, inverse condemnation and violation of equal protection under the law.
The suit seeks unspecified damages in excess of $10,000 and a jury trial.
The county commission did not immediately respond to a request for comment, although county officials typically do not remark on pending litigation.
SilverWing purchased 18 acres on the west side of the airport and received approval from the city of Sandpoint to develop a 45-unit subdivision featuring hangar homes in 2007. Included in the purchase was a perpetual easement granting access to the airport runway.
The suit alleges that the county knew the Federal Aviation Administration would have to approve of the through-the-fence access agreement, but never obtained the agency’s approval.
Acting under the belief the matter was squared away, SilverWing spent $6.1 million grading home sites, installing utility infrastructure and paving streets, the suit said. SilverWing also spent $500,000 developing a west-side taxiway to serve the development.
The FAA subsequently put the county on notice that the airport was not in compliance with federal grant assurances, partly because of the outstanding access issue.
Meanwhile, the county adopted a revised airport plan that proposed shifting the facility’s runway 60 feet to the west so the airport could accommodate larger aircraft, the suit alleges.
An airport official allegedly assured SilverWing the county had no real intention of upgrading the airport to a higher design standard. But in 2011 the county advised SilverWing it would have to rip up and relocate its taxiway to make way for the runway shift.
SilverWing contends the shift would encroach on some of the development’s most valuable lots and the ongoing FAA compliance issue is thwarting efforts to attract buyers.
The suit alleges that SilverWing is being unfairly singled out because the county is trying to extinguish its access agreement, but not meddling with other similar access agreements on the west side of the airport.
SilverWing has so far invested $15 million in the development, the suit said.