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Bonner County Historical Society asks council to confirm 1979 lease terms; council takes no action
Summary
The Bonner County Historical Society urged the Sandpoint City Council to reaffirm a long-standing $1-per-year lease option the society says it timely exercised in 2019; the council was presented a request but did not take action and the item will return to a future meeting.
Leaders of the Bonner County Historical Society and Museum asked the Sandpoint City Council on Sept. 3 to affirm the societys option to renew a 1979 lease at the historic $1-per-year rate and to confirm the original leases renewal provisions.
Hannah Combs, executive director of the Bonner County Historical Society, and Tanya Sherman, the society board president, recounted the museums history in Sandpoint and said the 1979 lease intentionally established a long-term partnership: a 40-year term at $1 per year with an automatic renewal option for successive 40-year terms at the societys option. According to the society representatives, BCHS exercised the renewal option in February 2019 and submitted the $40 payment specified in the lease; the city did not acknowledge that payment. The society said a second amendment was signed in February 2023 extending the lease through September 2025, but that a new draft lease presented to BCHS on May 29 would shorten the term to 30 years and change renewal to city discretion.
Why it matters: The historical society said it stewards roughly 400,000 artifacts and archives and that the lease terms are critical to securing private donations and planning a long-term facilities project. The society requested that the council direct staff to return to the next meeting with a confirming amendment recognizing the 2019 timely renewal, affirming the original lease terms and preserving the long-term partnership.
Council response: Mayor Grimm said the item was not scheduled as an action item that evening and that the lease will return to council for formal consideration at a future meeting. No vote was taken Sept. 3.
What happens next: Staff will return a lease amendment or recommendation to council at a future meeting; the society requested confirmation that the city will honor the 1979 lease renewal terms to permit the society to proceed with donor-funded repairs and expansion planning.
