Sandpoint lowers sidewalk fee

SANDPOINT — A reduced sidewalk fee was unanimously approved by the City Council Wednesday, along with two related code changes.

The fee was created to avoid the construction of new sidewalks across single lots that do not connect to an existing sidewalk on either side, sometimes referred to as “sidewalks to nowhere.” When a property owner is required to construct a new sidewalk across their property frontage, the code allows them to pay an in-lieu fee based on the width of their public street frontage. According to the original wording, funds from the fees are placed into a dedicated fund based on the “public land survey system” quarter section, and any fees must be spent within the same quarter section where the property is located. 

The reduction will take the fee from $144 to $60. This change was recommended for several reasons, including that the current fee costs three times as much as a sidewalk, which incentivized property owners to build “sidewalks to nowhere,” accomplishing the opposite of what the program was designed for.

The fee reduction was one of three changes city engineer Brandon Staglund proposed. The second included a change in wording that would allow the city to use funds from fees for any sidewalk, ramp or other projects related to pedestrian infrastructure, not just projects identified in the city’s Capital Improvement Plan. 

“[Current language] severely limits my ability to use this money before it expires and has to be returned to the person who paid it in the first place,” Staglund said. 

The third change clarifies that city staff makes decisions on when fees are paid. 

The new addition to the code states, “payment of the sidewalk in-lieu fee shall be at the discretion of the public works director or the city engineer.”

Those decisions are administrative and can be appealed, city officials said.

Councilor Pam Duquette voiced concern about the use of the word “discretion” in that wording, saying it is too vague and offers no parameters for citizens to rely on city staff to use. 

As a solution, Staglund recommended new wording specifying something similar to “if the property frontage does not connect to the existing sidewalk network, you are required to pay an in lieu fee, unless waived in writing by the public works director.”

However, during public comment, one citizen said she preferred the term “discretion” as it allows more flexibility for staff to approach each case individually. She said that the staff knows of an upcoming project that would easily connect to a “sidewalk to nowhere” in the future, she said. Then they would be able to decide according to those existing circumstances. 

The three changes to the code were voted on unanimously as originally presented.