Council to discuss, swim lessons, lifeguards

SANDPOINT — While the Sandpoint City Council doesn’t expect to cover any old business at Wednesday’s meeting, it will discuss proposed aquatic-based summer youth programs and a lifeguard program update among new items.

The rebuilding of an aquatics program at City Beach, expanding a past program into a half-day summer camp that has the potential to serve up to 60 children per day will be considered. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the city’s youth swim lesson program has been canceled since the summer of 2020.

City officials said the lifeguard program has also been negatively impacted by the demographic and shifting employment environment over the last few years in the agenda packet. In 2023, the lifeguard program, despite receiving the same budget allocation it had in years past, was unable to recruit lifeguards and was paused.

“Recognizing the larger challenges faced by not just Sandpoint, but cities all over the country, in recruiting and retaining lifeguards, the city has decided to put the lifeguard program on pause again in 2024, instead focusing our limited resources on providing aquatics-based instruction and supervised free swim opportunities at City Beach, as well as other activities such as games, crafts, and sports,” city officials said in information included in the meeting packet.

The council is also expected to approve changes to the city’s Contract & Procurement Policy that will accommodate updates to Idaho Code by increasing the formal solicitation requirement from $100,000 to $150,000 thresholds. Administrative updates made throughout the policy are also expected to be approved, including changing the reference of divisions to departments and adding the mayor as authorizing signatory where the reference was for city administrator approvals, officials said in the agenda packet. Those areas now reflect, “city administrator or mayor.”

Bid solicitations for pavement maintenance and chip seal projects are expected to be authorized. The council will also consider the purchase of street repair equipment from Cimline.

At the beginning of the meeting, Sandpoint Mayor Jeremy Grimm is expected to make proclamations for the 50th anniversary of the Sandpoint Senior Center, and Peace Officers Memorial Day and Police Week. 

Wednesday’s meeting will be held at Sandpoint City Hall, 1123 Lake St., starting at 5:30 p.m. The public can attend in person or online at sandpointidaho.gov.