Zoning commission approves RV park reapplication

SANDPOINT — In a 4-1 vote, Bonner County zoning commissioners approved a conditional use permit that would allow the installation of a 20-unit RV park off Clagstone Road and Al’s Welding Road in Blanchard.  

Thursday night, the board held a four-and-a-half-hour meeting to discuss the application submitted by Stephen Doty of Idaho Land LLC. 

The application was originally approved by the zoning commission June 2, 2022, before being appealed to the county commissioners and approved Sept. 1, 2022. On Aug. 17, 2023, the application was appealed again and bound to District Court, where the application was vacated.  

The application was then approved once more by county commissioners and again vacated by a District Court decision. In Dec. 2024, the application was revised and re-submitted to the zoning commission for review.  

As part of the resubmission, the applicant removed all references to affordable housing or long-term residential use, ensuring that the application was in line with commercial use code. In addition, to comply with public water supply, the applicant agreed to only install 19 of the proposed 20 RV pads.    

For Thursday’s meeting, zoning commissioners were asked by the planning department to make their decision about the conditional use permit on three factors:  

1. Is the application in conflict with the Comprehensive Map Plan?  

2. Does the application comply with Bonner County Revised Code?  

3. Will the proposed application create a hazard to the public or local entities?  

The commission’s decision followed a lengthy list of presentations and testimony from the Bonner County Planning Department, Doty, as well as agency and public comments submitted before the meeting. 

Doty testified first, sharing the turmoil he faced in dealing with the application's wave of approvals and denials. Doty indicated that six other conditional use permits for RV parks had been approved during the over two-year span he’s spent going back and forth between commissioning boards and District Court.  

To prove his point, Doty brought the six approved RV applications, presenting a single file less than a quarter inch thick. After holding up his competitors’ applications, Doty used two hands to hold up the paperwork necessary for his application that has yet to be officially approved. 

Aside from visuals, Doty also used the zoning commission staff report to further support his application. He said his application was revised to align with the commercial use table rather than residential, preventing a conflict with county code that suggests only one RV can be used as residential in plots smaller than five acres.  

Doty also referenced a site map that showed two different access points to the RV park, creating an exit strategy for campers in the event that a fire or hazard would occur.  

The handful of community members who signed up to testify were mostly against the application, raising a range of concerns, including fire mitigation, limited parking spaces and excessive noise.  

Additionally, individuals noted the lack of support from Bonner County Sheriff Daryl Wheeler and conflicting language provided by Spirit Lake Fire District.  

The zoning commissioners took all comments and testimonies into account as they debated the approval of the application, even taking into consideration the use of “may” and “might” in Wheeler’s letter to the board. 

The commissioners ultimately concluded that the application did not conflict with the comprehensive plan map because it fell into the commercial use category, complied with county code and did not pose any immediate hazards to the public or surrounding entities.