City Given Until Dec. 2 To Kill Permit Judge Gives City Three Weeks To Rescind Building Permit For Sanders Beach Home

The City of Coeur d’Alene has until next month to rescind a building permit issued illegally for a home on Sanders Beach, a district judge ruled Thursday.

But boulders placed on the beach can stay - for now. The judge said it wasn’t his job to order them removed. “I don’t think it was part of what I was asked to do,” First District Judge Gary Haman said.

Haman ruled last month that a footings and foundation permit issued to Joe Chapman violated a long-standing prohibition on buildings south of East Lakeshore Drive and ordered the city to rescind the permit.

On Thursday, Haman gave the city until Dec. 2 - the deadline to appeal his Oct. 14 decision - to rescind the permit.

The ruling is the latest in a squabble over a 4-1/2-block strip of sand that is owned by people who live on the north side of East Lakeshore Drive. The area has been used by the public for a century. The feud has raged in court since the Sanders Beach Preservation Association filed suit against the city Sept. 23, four days after Chapman started building the foundation for a two-bedroom house.

Chapman was shut down by the city one day after the Sanders Beach Preservation Association filed suit.

In court Thursday, the association had asked Haman to order the city to require the city rescind the building permit immediately. It also wanted the judge to force the city to remove boulders placed on the beach as part of the construction of the house.

“It’s not a big deal,” said Ray Givens, the group’s attorney. “… but if the court enters an order it should be enforced.”

Haman ruled that returning the beach to its preconstruction state was not up to him to decide as part of the current lawsuit. Determining whether the boulders’ placement violated the city’s Shoreline Ordinance is a separate issue, the judge said.

The City Council plans to discuss its appeal options in executive session at its Nov. 18 meeting, said attorney Charles Hosack. Chapman was not involved in the suit and cannot appeal.

, DataTimes