Waterfront Walk Developing Sand Creek Boardwalk Has Been A Struggle For Sandpoint

When the city of Sandpoint decided to go for the Cadillac of boardwalks along Sand Creek, it had to do without the extras.

So when the Sand Creek moorage dock is finished later this fall, it won’t have a concrete stairway up to Bridge Street.

Nor will it have street lights along its length. Or benches.

But it’ll be a start.

Just getting this far has been a struggle, said Stephen Drinkard, the city’s grant writer.

“It’s been a hornet’s nest,” said Drinkard, who’s been working on the project for almost two years.

Last year the city was awarded a $100,000 state waterways grant to build the dock. The state stipulated that it be for public day use only, and free of charge.

The dock will hold 15 to 18 boats, providing boaters with a place to moor downtown for shopping and dining.

City officials had the option to build a wooden dock, but decided a reinforced steel, concrete dock would last more than twice as long and require less maintenance.

But when the first bids came back last year, they ranged from $225,000 to $300,000.

Complicating matters further was the ownership issues along Sand Creek between the Powerhouse and Bridge Street. The city had to contact all the property owners with riparian rights and request easements.

Some were hard to track down. The new owners of the Garden Restaurant were part of AT&T, and almost inaccessible, hidden away in some East Coast office.

Harry Magnuson, who owns office buildings leased by Bonner County, didn’t return phone calls until an intermediary made contact on behalf of the city, Drinkard said.

Others “were resistant; `Hey, I’m losing my dock,”’ Drinkard said. “But they were won over by the idea that they’re gaining another sidewalk.

“In the long run, their property is still going to be worth a lot of money.”

Finally, AT&T sold the old Garden Restaurant to a local partnership, Jubilation Inc., and Magnuson called back.

Papers were signed.

But it all took so long that Drinkard had to get an extension on the state grant.

When the city went out to bid again this year, the bids still came in too high.

Some local business owners offered to raise private funds in order to build the ideal dock. But city officials worried that the fund-raising would take too long and they’d miss their construction window when the water was high enough to drive pilings.

So they went back to the drawing board and scaled back the project.

“In short, there were many incarnations of the design,” Drinkard said.

And it was still too expensive.

Jubilation saved the project by covering the costs of the boardwalk along the length of its property, where an office building is under construction.

The final balance was $112,000, said Sandpoint Public Works Director Kody Van Dyk. The city came up with the extra $12,000, and contractor Charlie Kramer was hired to build the dock.

Jubilation’s donation made the project possible, Van Dyk said. The completion date now is the end of October.

But city officials hope that’s not the end of the boardwalk. They plan to pursue another grant to extend it to the Cedar Street Bridge.

And, maybe some more private donors will come forward to help pay for a few extras.

“The hope is the business community will see what an asset this is and generate some money,” Drinkard said. “It’s a win-win for everybody.”