Work delays keep Port of Hope in CdA

COEUR d’ALENE — A nonprofit detox and criminal transition facility will remain in Coeur d’Alene for the time being.

Port of Hope, located at 218 23rd Street in Coeur d’Alene, plans to move to a new facility at a business park in Post Falls to continue its work bringing individuals recently released from prison or struggling with addiction back into the folds of society. However, delays in construction of the new facility caused Port of Hope Inc. to seek another extension for a special use permit that was originally issued in 2014 and allows the organization to operate in close proximity to Fernan STEM Academy.

“Port of Hope has upheld all of the conditions set forth in the special use permit and will continue to abide by them,” wrote Tamara Chamberlain, Port of Hope executive director, in a letter to the city council. “We have remained incident free at our facility and have used due diligence to protect the surrounding community from feeling any negative impact of our presence.”

Last week, the Coeur d’Alene City Council approved an extension of the permit until Sept. 1, 2017. It is the third extension given to Port of Hope.

In her letter to the city council, Chamberlain wrote that the organization had encountered “several unforeseen delays” while constructing the new facility in Post Falls.

Those delays, according to the letter, include: bids for architects and contractors coming in over budget, a key staff member leaving the organization, and city of Post Falls commercial sewer cap requirements.

“Port of Hope is dedicated and financially invested into completion of this project and relocating the residential reentry center to the new location,” Chamberlain wrote. “We continue to believe in the necessity of our program and are actively pushing the completion of the building so that we can relocate.”

Under the terms of the extension, Port of Hope will have to operate under the same eight stipulations, updated to reflect the new expiration date, that were initiated by the city council when they approved a special use permit in 2014:

1. The maximum number of offenders is 43.

2. No offenders required by Idaho law to register as a sex offender may be housed at the facility.

3. No offender will be allowed to reside at the facility for more than 365 calendar days.

4. The facility must at all times comply with requirements of the Federal Bureau of Prisons Residential Reentry Center Statement of Work regarding security and discipline.

5. Create an exclusion zone within the facility’s GPS system around the Fernan Elementary School property. The system must alert the facility within one minute if an offender enters the exclusion zone. Exclusion zone reports (with names redacted) must be made available to the Coeur d’Alene School District and the city upon request.

6. Place GPS units on all pre-release offenders, in the facility and on home confinement with a VCCLEA status. This status includes assault charges, drug charges, etc.

7. The facility will not allow offenders to travel to bus stops without staff supervision during the peak hours when school children are arriving and leaving school (currently 7-8 a.m. and 2:30-3:30 p.m.).

8. The special use permit with be valid until the sunset date of Sept. 1, 2017.

Prior to expressing support for the organization and unanimously approving the extension, city council members asked Community Planning Director Hilary Anderson questions about the details. Councilwoman Kiki Miller asked Anderson what would happen if Port of Hope was unable to move before the Sept. 1 deadline, to which Anderson replied that the organization would have to once again apply through the city for an extension.

“We’ve been doing this for four, maybe five, years,” said Councilman Woody McEvers. “And we think this is the final one?”

“They are pushing forward and really making progress,” Anderson replied. “They want to move to their new facility and continue the work they’re doing.”