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Mayor and Council:

On May 24, 2018 the mayor delivered a statement to his Roundtable session concerning the city’s 37-acre parcel property on Baldy Road, adjacent to the double tracks that define the city’s boundary.

As city clerk in the early 1980s, I recall that Mayor Sally Cupan explored relocating the city’s wastewater plant which was then (as now) located on the Pend Oreille River at the end of Ella Avenue. She found several locations which were away from residential areas. None of the City Council was interested. Too much money. We don’t care if it smells; those people who built there knew they were building next to the sewer. Only the mayor had a vision of what could be.

Mayor Rognstad lauds the Baldy Road property as an “incredible amenity” for our city. I think the city’s real “incredible amenity” is the ground that the waste water plant currently sits on. Envision the expansion of Lakeview Park, perhaps a swimming area, a seasonal marina and boat launch and watching ospreys soar and the moon rise while listening to the Festival at Sandpoint.

Now envision, the museum gone, the arboretum gone, more grass gone all in order to accommodate an expanded wastewater treatment plant. You – and only you – have the power to make the right choice.

Remember there are three “Cs” in life: choices, chances and changes. You must make a choice to take a chance or nothing will ever change. What will your legacy be?

HELEN NEWTON

Sandpoint