Sandpoint planning commission holds workshop on residential uses, heights and tree protections in Commercial A zone

Sandpoint Planning and Zoning Commission members and city staff on June 3 held an educational workshop on what types of residential development are allowed in the city’s Commercial A zoning district and how the written rules shape downtown form and future projects.

City Planner Bill Dean opened the discussion by stressing the session was informational, not a formal proposed code amendment. “Tonight, we’re not talking about any particular proposed code change,” Dean said. He walked commissioners and members of the public through the Commercial A provisions of the Sandpoint City Code, explaining how the code’s purpose statement, allowable-use table, setback, height and design standards drive the look and intensity of new development.

The commission and staff highlighted several standing limits in the Commercial A rules. Dean noted the code generally allows residential dwelling units only within or above nonresidential structures and that new detached single-family homes are not permitted. The code prioritizes a “storefront character” along sidewalks, including a typical 0-foot front setback, and permits residential uses primarily above the ground floor or behind a street-facing storefront. Dean pointed to a 65-foot maximum height listed in the code, with a 35-foot maximum for any portion of a structure within 50 feet of a residential zoning district, and called attention to what he described as a drafting gap for buildings between 35 and 45 feet where stepback requirements are unclear.

Dean described how intensity in the Commercial A district is…