Land use code change suit dismissed

SANDPOINT — A former Bonner County Planning & Zoning commissioner’s legal challenge of abrupt changes to the county’s land use code was dismissed on Monday, court records show.

Steve Temple, the former chairman of the volunteer panel, filed suit earlier this year, arguing that the county commission improperly enacted the code changes.

One of the code changes did away with the enumerated criteria that an applicant would have to articulate in order to trigger an appeal of a land use decision. Those criteria included findings that P&Z overstepped its statutory authority, acted capriciously or made a decision which was not supported by the public record.

The planning commission took up the proposal earlier this year, but remanded it back to the Planning Department for further study.

The county commission opted to advance the code change absent a P&Z recommendation. Temple resigned in protest and argued the move was illegal, a position which the county disputed.

Bonner County Deputy Prosecutor William Wilson, the county commission’s legal counsel in the dispute, moved to dismiss Temple’s petition for declaratory judgment in 1st District Court, holding that Temple lacked standing to bring the legal action.

In order to show standing, a litigant must allege or demonstrate and injury in fact.

Temple argued he had standing because he owns property in Bonner County and has a particular interest in the land use code due to his service on the commission.

Wilson countered that mere ownership of property in an area influenced by the code change is not a showing of palpable injury.

“In the present matter, the complainant fails to argue a single cognizable injury in fact to the plaintiff,” Wilson said in the motion to dismiss.

Wilson added that a generalized grievance also cannot confer standing.

Temple filed an affidavit in opposition to the motion contending that P&Z had effectively been stripped of its authority.

“Their decisions in zoning matters can be completely ignored on appeal by de novo appeal hearings in front of the county commissioners,” Temple wrote.

Temple’s counsel, attorney Will Herrington, said the code change is contrary to Idaho’s Local Land Use Planning Act.

“If he lacks standing, the county has a ‘get out of jail free’ card to ignore the statutory process defined by the legislature under LLUPA and adopted by the county in its own ordinances.” Herrington wrote.

Wilson and Herrington argued the motion before Judge Richard Christensen, who ruled on Monday that Temple lacked standing because he was unable to show palpable injury, court records indicate.

Wilson said during the hearing that the county will seek attorneys fees from Temple for being drawn into the litigation.