Sandpoint staff outline paid-parking proposal for City Beach and boat launches; public raises concerns about resort parking waiver

Sandpoint officials presented an early-stage paid-parking plan on Feb. 4 that would add hourly fees, annual passes and boat-launch charges at City Beach and other off-street lots, while public commenters raised concerns about a recent parking waiver issued for a proposed resort and the amount of the in-lieu fee it paid.

Jason Welker, the city’s Community Planning and Development director, told the Planning and Zoning Commission the proposal is a work in progress. “This is in the development stage right now,” Welker said, and he emphasized the city has no timeline to bring a final proposal to City Council: “There’s gonna be no rollout of a policy in the next year. This is something we’re looking at for the future.”

Why it matters: Sandpoint’s off-street parking inventory is heavily used during peak season, and staff said a paid system would both manage demand and create a revenue stream for maintenance. Welker said the city currently spends taxpayer dollars to resurface lots and that a parking-management revenue stream would fund long-term upkeep rather than relying solely on property tax dollars.

What staff proposed and why: Welker said the plan would add resident and nonresident annual passes, extend free pass hours at City Beach (from two hours to four for resident passes), and add boat-launch fees benchmarked to other North Idaho jurisdictions. The draft includes a $50 annual boat-launch pass for Idaho…