[{"_1":2,"_87":-5,"_88":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6483072,"mediaKeyId","5579495-c50e83ced321c308210289298e079744","parentId",5579495,"title","Rathdrum council adopts tentative FY25/26 budget that includes $10 million city‑hall transfer; adopts budget despite debate over parks staffing","audioSeconds",2834,"startMs",924000,"endMs",3758000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=5579495-c50e83ced321c308210289298e079744&start=924&end=3758","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5579495-c50e83ced321c308210289298e079744/thumbnail_924000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6483072/Rathdrum/Kootenai-County/Idaho/Rathdrum-council-adopts-tentative-FY2526-budget-that-includes-10-million-cityhall-transfer-adopts-budget-despite-debate-over-parks-staffing","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6483072-d537e05c1b117bfcb876475bda2073c1/orig.mp4?Expires=1771081958&Signature=Jmljx8jGsSl2cBTgUWfP1Gna8~no6AinanUnnKvsbFrrx6baIGffS8kS~chr3XtE25sl3Z9jIiYs1zJ0lJ1gVBcBRlCVxLl15z58dAH2cCne10bTkZv9lM-4~p50w0-mWLpWdg0nH14BlHQwwe5zwJ4ERMWuxhUTXOFNGwHdGX-pBjSCF5ZzeE-50ksInnCCLyE13mZgKVjFAIlbDfj4ttTfUxStWaaiOWubcLFMfffv582FrZB~HbYaZTtjolbQcBvlh8svSfnrlwmNhO2G-mw3VDGcpHkzTtaWQtTRbpJOkcEBQpv~jwXW0fjJ0FJHZVo7xBX4Hbh4NURtCbc5rQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Rathdrum","date","2025-08-14T03:32:26Z","article","The Rathdrum City Council voted to adopt the tentative fiscal year 2025–26 budget after staff presented revenue and expenditure totals and explained a planned $10,000,000 transfer from the general fund to a special revenue fund to pay for the city‑hall project.

City staff presented the budget package to the council and said the administrative and finance portion of the budget is $16,291,203 and that the proposal includes a $10,000,000 transfer from the general fund designated for the city‑hall project. Staff listed water fund revenue at $4,569,561 and sewer fund revenue at $7,121,000 and presented total city revenues as $46,990,355.

Staff explained the $10 million appears as both a revenue and an expenditure line because the general fund must transfer the cash into the special revenue account in order to spend it on the project. Staff said the general fund balance before the transfer was about $10.2 million and that, after moving $10,000,000, the unrestricted general fund balance would be sharply reduced; in discussion staff said the fund balance after the transfer would be \"about 200,000,\" while contingency and designated reserves would remain for a short‑term cushion.

Finance and planning staff also told the council that a county new‑construction valuation figure changed in the last two weeks. Staff had been using a $139,000,000 new‑construction market value; the county submitted a revised figure of $110,000,000, a $29,000,000 decrease that staff attributed to a reassessment of which land‑use changes qualify as \"new construction.\" That change lowered the estimated levy rate and — despite the proposed addition of $73,000 in property tax revenue (1.9% of the tax base) — staff showed the estimated tax bill for a $400,000 taxable home would fall by about $62 under the new levy calculation compared with last year’s levy rate.

The budget discussion included parks and recreation requests: parks staff asked to convert one part‑time position to full time and one seasonal position to full time (the proposal was discussed as roughly two positions overall) to avoid frequent office closures and to sustain cemetery recordkeeping and pathway and event maintenance. The estimated total cost for the two positions was described in discussion as \"around $72,000.\" Council members asked whether those positions could be funded by reallocations, fees, or by using savings; staff said some options exist but that, given current cuts to other projects, the positions could require a tax change unless other revenues or reductions are identified.

Councilmember John Hatcher moved to adopt the tentative budget for fiscal year 2025‑26; the motion was seconded and the council approved the tentative budget. During debate several council members noted that once the tentative budget is adopted for public notice and hearing it serves as a ceiling for next year’s expenditures and the council may reduce but not increase the adopted spending ceiling before final adoption.

Staff said the tentative budget will be published for a public hearing and that the public hearing will be held after the required notices are published in the local newspaper.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","August 13, 2025 - City Council Meeting","oneSentenceSummary","Council approved a tentative budget that includes a $10 million transfer from the general fund to a special revenue fund for the city‑hall project, and adopted the budget after debate over two proposed parks job upgrades costing about $70,000.","taxTitle","Rathdrum, Kootenai County, Idaho","taxId",55014,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6483077,"Rathdrum council discontinues smallest-lot zones, tables MR residential percentage changes after public objections",4881,182000,5063000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5579495-c50e83ced321c308210289298e079744&start=182&end=5063","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5579495-c50e83ced321c308210289298e079744/thumbnail_182000.jpg","/articles/6483077/Rathdrum/Kootenai-County/Idaho/Rathdrum-council-discontinues-smallest-lot-zones-tables-MR-residential-percentage-changes-after-public-objections","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6483077-8a7733f09c1c3cc2b69e1bb69b90ba90/orig.mp4?Expires=1771081958&Signature=nJ7woRD49tjGr5Lp42PR5OCizoM15NLZs4lLnciyN-zSNStILnHT3jHY8ENKLBl5ckdqWuIbg31~GPwfwwhcoZ750xTtRy5WVMw6yQn9N6NLt9oQMLYncleRwo6opwR1nTfg9tNYZVGuSBucEWupaYm3D~uHcRQI5C2KnsR73c63UNOiHwJts9uSiG4nkxLGG5Fhd0fO8Ok9w2qwHErhCruheTMdA9LLQjqZ7Dy2qcPFXRmat9DxBvj5QU1PH3xxCAtUa7DB8qpw5Z9kVT6ZWfg719Nst6fFQqOB9RHROWag3raARgxOy9CzExdzKZ1LaN~VjKWjR5zAxpO4fz9~tA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Rathdrum City Council voted to discontinue two smaller‑lot zoning categories and to adopt a code change allowing regulated sidewalk seating, but tabled a proposed change to the MR residential district that would have set lot‑size bands at 25%/25%/25%/25% after residents urged more review.

Councilmembers cited prior workshops and public hearings in explaining the ordinance changes and said the MR item needs further refinement. Councilmember Larry Sanders made the motion to adopt the two code sections on first reading and remove the MR residential language from tonight’s adoption; the council approved the motion and agreed to continue discussion of the MR percentages in a later workshop.

The matter drew several public comments during the visitor‑comment period. Resident Laura Fuller told the council she had run the proposed percentages through a calculator and that, \"This would give the developer the option to have, 50% of the lot sizes at the minimum size of 6,500 square feet.\" Fuller urged increasing the size of the largest band to reduce the portion of minimum‑size lots.

Resident Stacy O’Connell said the change would amount to a step back from the current distribution and said, \"This is our community. We should tell them what we are allowing. No gray area of expectations of them.\" O’Connell urged the council to restore a one‑third distribution or to raise the minimum lot sizes, arguing that builders with a discretionary band are likely to choose the smallest lots.

Emily, a staff planner who presented the ordinance, said the 25% bands and the \"builder choice\" element grew out of council workshops and were intended to provide the flexibility needed to make subdivisions feasible. She told the council the 25% figure was not the work of a single staff member but the result of prior council workshops and drafting.

Council members discussed options including stricter intermixing rules (to prevent long runs of the smallest lots), raising minimum sizes for one or more bands, or changing how discretionary lots are allocated. Council members said the MR section could be returned for further drafting with clearer written standards that would limit repetitive patterns of small lots.

The council kept the portions of the ordinance that would discontinue the R3 and R2D small‑lot zones and that would create a legal framework for sidewalk seating in the downtown district, and asked staff to bring back refined MR language for further deliberation.

The ordinance references were City Code sections 15‑4‑1 and 15‑4‑2 (adopted) and 15‑5‑4 (MR residential, tabled). The council’s action preserves previous public‑hearing record for the parts adopted and allows additional public review of any materially revised MR language.

The council did not adopt any changed percentages for MR tonight; the item will return for further debate and possible public hearing once staff brings clarified, intermixing‑oriented language.","After public comment raised concerns that a proposed MR residential formula would let builders favor the smallest lots, the Rathdrum City Council voted to adopt code changes ending two small‑lot zones and to legalize sidewalk seating, but tabled the proposed MR percentage rule for further review.","actionData","errors"]

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Rathdrum council adopts tentative FY25/26 budget that includes $10 million city‑hall transfer; adopts budget despite debate over parks staffing

Rathdrum council discontinues smallest-lot zones, tables MR residential percentage changes after public objections