County preparing for possible re-entry center

Kootenai County’s Planning and Zoning Commission will meet March 12 to begin drafting an amendment to the county’s land use code, which will specifically address community re-entry centers.

The Idaho Department of Correction announced last summer its consideration of Kootenai County as a potential location for a 130-bed re-entry center for parolees and probationers who are already living in North Idaho and offenders who would return to the area following incarceration.

According to IDOC, the proposed pre-release center would provide counseling, job opportunities, daily drug testing and a softer re-entry into society intended to reduce the chance for re-offending.

IDOC already operates four facilities in southern Idaho and is building another one in Twin Falls. The department has no re-entry center in North Idaho.

In an earlier interview, Josh Tewalt, director of IDOC, said a significant portion of the state's inmates are from North Idaho, and having a facility in Kootenai County makes sense.

"We're trying to do it because we think it will help people transition successfully into the community," Tewalt said.

Idaho's five northern counties are already home to more than 2,000 felony probationers and parolees, according to the IDOC.

The new center would allow offenders to work while becoming reunited with their families. While the center was funded by state legislators last year, IDOC has yet to make a formal proposal to the county for a land use permit and has no timeline to do so.

Kootenai County’s Land Use and Development Code does not address this type of land use. If an application were submitted for consideration, the county would have little say on where such a facility might be located and under what conditions.

The Board of County Commissioners asked the county’s planning and zoning commission to start working on a code amendment to prudently address this type of use. By amending the code, the county would be in a better position to control the decision.

“The planning commission will be holding a workshop to start reviewing draft language for a proposed code amendment,” Kootenai County Community Development Planning Manager Mary Shaw said. “It is not a public hearing. The public hearings will be scheduled at a later date once final draft language is approved.”

Neither the planning commission nor the county commissioners have taken a position on the re-entry center proposal. If the proposal is formalized, the commissioners want to be prepared with criteria that would allow them to evaluate the application.

“Right now we don’t have any metrics,” Kootenai County Commissioner Chris Fillios said. “Any decision we make would be capricious. The whole purpose of this request is to establish metrics.”

The county also wants to ensure citizens have the ability to submit comments before and at public hearings.

Once the planning commission has finished drafting the proposed amendment, a public hearing will be scheduled. The planning commission will then make a recommendation to the Board of County Commissioners which will hold its own public hearing and accept public testimony.