Recreation grants awarded

The bathroom at Hauser Lake Park had an odor only Pepe Le Pew could appreciate.

Thirty years of heavy use rendered the county-owned commode so smelly visitors complained it was intolerable and the county, in 2006, decided people could no longer do business there.

Porta-potties were brought in, and the bathroom – which had no ventilation and was purportedly stinking up the entire 11-acre park – was shuttered.

Soon, there won’t be a need to hold it: Hauser Lake Park is getting a new bathroom.

The $61,000 project is among dozens statewide awarded a share of nearly $7 million in recreation grants from Idaho’s Department of Parks and Recreation. Funds come from gas taxes, user fees and registration of RVs, boats, motorbikes, ATVs and snowmobiles.

The largest share of grant funds in Bonner County are going to build a new restroom at Round Lake, replacing a 1955 building that has a failing septic system and is not wheelchair accessible, according to Jill Murphey, IDPR’s North Idaho grants specialist.

“It’ll address the public health and safety issues from the old building,” Murphey said.

Several projects involve matching contributions from others.

Bonner County is receiving nearly $155,000 to build a shed in Coolin that will be used by Priest Lake Ambulance and to store a groomer used for snowmobile trails.

The groomer committee raised nearly $200,000 toward the project in cash and in-kind gifts throughout the Priest Lake area.

Russ Brown, a member of the groomer committee, wrote the grant.

Coolin, on the east side of Priest Lake, doesn’t have an ambulance facility. The ambulance was stored at the Fire Department, but the Fire Department needs the room for another fire truck, Brown said.

The idea came up to build a facility that would house the ambulance, along with the groomer, which is used to maintain about 400 miles of snowmobile trails.

“It’s a win-win,” Brown said.

Brown said the facility also will provide room for Bonner County Emergency Medical Services workers to stay overnight during busy times of the year. They have been renting rooms at a local resort, Brown said.

The Idaho Panhandle National Forest is receiving more than $85,000 in Bonner County for two projects: Improvements to the Talache-Blacktrail trail and for parking and signage at Trestle Creek.

Other Bonner County projects include a double-vault toilet at the Hope boat launch, mooring buoys on Lake Pend Oreille, a marine tow vehicle for the Bonner County Sheriff’s Office and no wake buoys for Sandpoint’s City Beach, Sand Creek Marina and Windbag Marina.

The Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office was awarded more than $25,000 to purchase two personal watercraft trailers, a snowmobile trailer and snowmobile equipment.

The shower house at Farragut State Park’s Waldron Campground will be renovated with $185,000 in grants and the Thimbleberry Campground will get a new vault toilet.

The city of Hayden is receiving nearly $60,000 for new docks at Honeysuckle Beach.