LETTER: Spencer shoots, and misses

I find myself in an unfortunate position of having to respond to a letter submitted by Larry Spencer concerning the refunding of the Kootenai County impact fees. In it, Mr. Spencer more than alluded to Timbered Ridge Homes extorting our customers for the forthcoming refunds by refusing to sign off on them. The only request we have received has been from Mr. Spencer himself asking for us to sign his contract with our customers in which both he and the customers are to split the refund. None of the money being refunded was ever intended to be given to Timbered Ridge Homes and none of the refunded impact fees for any of our customers ever will be. The county and the individual districts who received the impact fees are voluntarily returning the fees directly to the home owners and not to the home builders. Timbered Ridge Homes has not, nor will not, receive any refunds on any home we constructed for our customers. That is a matter of public record.

Mr. Spencer’s unwarranted and to paraphrase him, “not unlike extortion” attack of Timbered Ridge Homes concerning the refund of the impact fees is in my mind not unlike slander. As a home builder and representative of the North Idaho Building Contractors Association, I sat on the Kootenai County Impact Fee Advisory Committee over several months. At its conclusion, the county decided to suspend the impact fees for 18 months. During that process the refunding or the mechanics of refunding the money was never discussed. That decision and the subsequent decision by the districts to refund money were made voluntarily. Mr. Spencer did nothing more than rattle his ever present lawsuit sabre and allude to legal action in convincing homeowners to sign contracts that would give him money not paid for or earned by him.

The unfortunate ramification of this country’s wonderfully written freedom of speech amendment is that when misused and misapplied, as Mr. Spencer has done, it allows some the ability to say what they want despite the harm it does to those who earn their living the old fashioned way, by working for it.

BARRY STEARNS

Timbered Ridge Homes

President

North Idaho Building Contractors Assoc.