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In response to Mr. Ogle’s letter, “Sandpoint council rife with conflicts of interest”:

Mr. Ogle was troubled by the reappointment of Mr. Grimm onto the Sandpoint Urban Renewal Agency board. Although Mr. Grimm has served on that board for three years, he has served the agency well. His knowledge and creativity regarding urban planning and development has proven to be valuable to the agency and to the city. For this reason he is well qualified to serve in this capacity. It has been commonplace historically for mayors to reappoint commission, committee and board members to successive terms if they show themselves to be capable.

Mr. Ogle seems to think presumably that it is a conflict of interest if a board member has a stake in a business within the district. Following this logic would make him as well as every other business owner or employee in the downtown core ineligible to serve on the SURA board. The board needs representation by downtown business.

Mr. Ogle also suggested that Mr. Grimm was unethical in requesting a tax break for his current employer and that this, by extension, further demonstrates conflict of interest. First of all, Mr. Grimm did not request a tax break, he requested a waiver of fees which Urban Renewal did not grant. Secondly, any public board, commission or committee member may make a request of the board which they serve upon recusing themselves from the board on that issue. It is this very process, sanctioned by Idaho Code, which protects public agencies from conflict of interest.

SHELBY ROGNSTAD

Mayor

Sandpoint