Bonner County approves temporary easement for Sandpoint Airport and accepts aviation counsel rate addendum

The Bonner County Board of Commissioners on Oct. 14 approved a temporary construction easement for the 2025 obstruction-removal project at Sandpoint Airport and accepted an addendum to an engagement letter with the law firm Pillsbury to retain aviation counsel Paul Fradinberg.

The easement, described by airport staff as applying to “Site Number 2,” allows crews to remove trees growing into the airport's airspace. The agreement begins after execution and ends Dec. 1, 2025, or 30 days after project completion, whichever comes first, according to the presentation to the board.

County airport staff said the easement was one of three sites around Sandpoint Airport involved in the obstruction-removal project and recommended the board approve it. Commissioners voted to authorize the county to enter the easement and allow the chair to sign administratively; the motion passed on a roll-call vote.

Commissioners also approved an addendum to Bonner County's engagement letter with Pillsbury to retain Paul Fradinberg as outside aviation counsel. Board members and staff discussed a recent rate increase on Pillsbury's updated rate sheet and whether the county should seek alternatives for lower-complexity matters.

Nate Adams of the Bonner County Prosecutor's Office said the firm handles complex federal aviation issues and, while the new rates are a significant jump, the county uses them only occasionally for highly specialized matters. County staff explained that day-to-day airport legal work is handled mostly by in-house counsel or a smaller local firm, and that Pillsbury would be engaged for the rarer, complex federal issues.

The board voted to accept the addendum and authorized the chair to sign administratively.

Both votes were approved by the board; members recorded affirmative roll-call responses during each motion.