Opponents swarm work academy proposal

HOPE — Proponents of a proposed counseling center on the Montana border faced a tough room during a three-hour public hearing at Hope Elementary School on Thursday night.

The Bonner County Planning & Zoning was forced to cut the hearing short due to a time constraint involving the use of the school. The hearing was continued to 6 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 6, at the Bonner Count Administration Building in Sandpoint.

The public hearing remains open, although only to allow for North Idaho Work Academy developer Bruce Boudousquie to rebut concerns raised by opponents of the project. Bonner County’s land-use hearing process does not allow for surrebuttal, which means no additional testimony will be taken.

Boudousquie (pronounced Boo-dess-kay) is seeking permit approval to situate five bunk houses on a 21-acre parcel on the south side of the Clark Fork River. There will be no electricity or pressurized water or septic systems.

Potable water would be delivered to the site and a vault toilet would be used to collect human waste. A phone line will be installed so help can be summoned in the event of emergency due to a lack of cellular phone reception in the remote location.

The facility is intentionally bare bones and the program is meant to help voluntary guests develop personal and interpersonal skills without creature comforts or distractions of today’s tech-oriented society.

The program would have up to 18 participants and six staff members. Participants would stay in bunk houses fitted with wood stoves.

It is not a substance abuse treatment facility, although Boudousquie said some of its guests may be struggling with those issues. Those with violent, sexual or drug-related felony offenses will be denied admission into the program.

More than 40 people voiced opposition to the project during the hearing, although there was a smattering of those who testified in support of it.

“I see this as a nice alternative for young men trying to improve their lives,” said Clark Fork resident Timothy Dick. “They’re there willingly to learn skills they need to get along in life.”

Boudousquie told the commission that most of the people accepted into the program will not have a criminal record. He emphasized that people would be there voluntarily and offered transportation if they wished to leave, which minimizes the risk of runaways.

“There is no reason to run because they are there of their own free will,” said Boudousquie, who added that some opponents are making material misrepresentations about the project.

Boudousquie said the impact of the project would be comparable to two residential homes.

Opponents disagreed, contending that the project would overtax an already substandard road with traffic, diminish property values and upset the tranquility of the rural neighborhood.

But concerns over public safety were paramount among opponents. Moreover, those concerns are shared by the city of Clark Fork, Sheriff Daryl Wheeler and the Planning Department, which are recommending denial of the project.

Neighboring landowners on both sides of the border maintain the project will heighten the fire risk and import strangers with problems into a neighborhood populated by families and senior citizens.

“The safety issue is the biggest concern for everyone here,” said Dyan Schecterson of Heron, Mont.