Pact to remove home in floodway gets OK'd
<p>Bonner County is in the final stages of obtaining approval of a FEMA grant to demolish this home that was built in the floodway at the confluence of Pack River and Grouse Creek. (Photo courtesy JERRY LUTHER)</p>
SANDPOINT — Bonner County will soon be no longer in Dutch with the Federal Emergency Management Agency over a home that was illegally constructed in a floodway.
County commissioners have approved a sale agreement and settlement that paves the way for the removal of a home constructed at the confluence of Pack River and Grouse Creek.
“This settlement agreement has been a long time in the process,” said Commissioner Glen Bailey.
The home’s presence in the floodway threatened Bonner County’s standing in the National Flood Insurance Program, which provides discounted rates to more than 200 landowners.
The county secured a pre-disaster mitigation grant from FEMA to purchase the home so it can be demolished. The home site would be restored to its natural state and managed for recreation purposes, such as a pullout for canoeists and kayakers.
The county permitted construction of the home in 1994, but FEMA concluded there was no record of a required analysis to determine the influence the home would have on the base flood elevation.
James and Marlene Stobie purchased the two-story home in 2008 and later made other improvements to the property were made without permits.
Under the settlement agreement, the county is purchasing the 20-acre property for $578,500.
“We had a $12,500 increase in the cost of this property from one appraisal to the next appraisal. This FEMA grant requires we pay market value so we do have to pay the appraised amount,” said Planning Director Clare Marley.
Marley said land values in Bonner County increased while the grant request was pending at the federal level.
The property at one point was being offered for sale for $849,000, according to an undated real estate advertisement.
The settlement agreement is awaiting final approval from FEMA. A provision in the agreement prevents legal action being taken in the matter.
“This closes the door on both sides to any future litigation,” said Marley.
FEMA’s approval will cap a six-year saga over the home.
“This has been going on a long time so it’s nice to see this cleaned up,” said commission Chairman Cary Kelly.