HEARING: Hold on a minute

Recently, a hearing was held with the BOCC regarding another proposal for an unneeded multi-home subdivision along the Highway 97 Corridor; one that would have made this deteriorating curvy road even more dangerous and put into further peril designated wetlands, Lake Coeur d’Alene, surrounding streams and wildlife habitat.

There are already well over 1,700 empty subdivision lots available on the east side of the lake for building on, with failed subdivisions and projects continually polluting our precious waters (including Lake Coeur d’Alene) and destroying more and more wildlife habitat, as well as the roads being used by a constant flow of heavy construction traffic.

Rules and laws in Kootenai County can be very wishy-washy, offer many exceptions to what was intended by an ordinance or zoning, and if interpreted without common sense, catastrophic to the future of what makes Kootenai County beautiful and appealing. Extreme ideology cannot rule as it has often done in the past, without massive damage to the future of rural communities, or any community for that matter. Taking an attitude of “It’s my land and I can do whatever I want” is a very selfish and destructive way to believe.

Citizens should be grateful we are seeing some common sense finally be applied to land use decisions being made by the BOCC. Without it, we will eventually bemoan the destruction of Lake Coeur d’Alene, our precious streams and wildlife habitat, and all that makes Kootenai County desirable and special.

BEV TWILLMAN

Harrison