Camp Bay Road decision left to the courts

▶️ Listen to this article now.

SANDPOINT — Commissioners will leave the question of whether or not there is public access to Lake Pend Oreille via Camp Bay Road to the courts.

Wednesday’s unanimous decision follows an almost year-long debate over whether there is legal public access via the road. Discourse began on April 7 when county commissioners decided to vacate the final half-mile stretch of Camp Bay Road.

That decision resulted in a lawsuit against the county in First District Court. A ruling in the case on Nov. 15 determined that the commissioners would need to revisit their prior vacation decision because the board did not provide enough substantial evidence supporting their 2021 decision to transfer the last section of the road into private ownership.

“At this point I can’t make a decision either way until I can find out what’s going on with this lake access — whether it truly exists or not,” Commission Chair Dan McDonald said in the final minutes of the meeting. “My recommendation to move to deny because we haven’t seen a determination yet on whether or not there is truly legal access. I think that needs to be adjudicated by a judge, not by us.”

The Nov. 15 ruling also asked the commission to more closely examine if there was a conflict of interest involving then director of the road and bridge department, Steve Klatt.

Klatt spoke at the meeting during public comment, informing the commission and the packed audience that he recused himself from any dealings involving the property owner, M3 ID Camp Bay LLC.

According to Klatt’s statements at Wednesday’s meeting, he worked with private clients while he was employed as director of the county’s road and bridge department. Klatt stated that Green Enterprises was one of his clients at the time. However, Klatt maintained that he widely declared the conflict of interest to the commission, and to other department staff members beginning in October 2020.

“When M3 was under contract [to purchase the land], I was first contacted about the idea of a locally funded improvement project,” Klatt said. “At that time I declared, ‘I have got a conflict of interest here. We will turn this project over to Matt Mulder, the county road engineer, and to Jason Topp.’”

Topp is currently the director of the road and bridge department, but at the time, he was a foreman for the district that includes Camp Bay.

“On December 15, [2020], I met with [Topp] and the county commissioners and brought the subject of a locally funded improvement project to the commissioners. I told them very clearly that I had a very definite conflict of interest because I was engaged as a consultant to Green Enterprises, who were selling the property, and that I was completely recused, and would have nothing to do with the project in any way shape or form,” Klatt said.

“I have been skewered recently. I just wanted to clarify that my conflict of interest was obvious, it was there, it was clearly declared, and I took it very seriously. I completely stepped aside from any involvement in this project,” Klatt said at the end of his statement.

Topp also chose to speak during the meeting, sympathizing with public opinion.

“The paving of Camp Bay Road is a big deal in my book. On the professional side of it, I support the vacation,” Topp said. “On the personal side of it, I probably wouldn’t.”

Many citizens have spoken at prior public meetings of how the road has a history of providing public access to the lake.

However, the property’s owners also attest that they have historic ties to the land. With three generations of Greens residing on the lakefront property, they maintain the road has always been private, but that previous generations allowed neighbors to use the road to get to the lake.

Of the 47 public speakers, nearly all were opposed to the road vacation, including three members of the Green family.

“This wasn’t done in stupidity, so don’t vacate the road in stupidity,” Randy Green said.

Another family member chose to speak during public comment.

“My grandmother never wanted that land developed,” Megan Green said, “My uncle conned her into giving it to him by making her think that he was the only one that was going to preserve it. And now that he’s developing it, I’m sure if she could see this, she would cry.”

Representatives on behalf of M3 state that there is no public access to the lake at Camp Bay, and that there never has been.

“Misinformation is a corrosive thing,” said Doug Marvis on behalf of M3, “I heard a good deal of misinformation today. A lot of the misinformation surrounds this notion that the vacation of Camp Bay Road would deprive the citizens of Bonner County public access to the lake — that is factually false.”

“That beach was private property of the Green family, it is now the private property of M3 Idaho Camp Bay LLC,” Marvis said.

A majority of public commenters highlighted the importance of maintaining all public accesses to the lake, stating that there are few remaining choices for those who wish to access the lake legally.

One man chose to directly address the commission.

“You three gentlemen today have the opportunity to be heroes or villains, and I hope you choose to be heroes,” Gene Belfry said.

“Our objections have nothing to do with private property rights, stopping development, or telling anyone what they can or can’t do with their own land,” said Jeniffer Arn. “It is not a partisan issue. It’s about a public road that legally provides lake access, a road that has been public since it was built with taxpayer money over 110 years ago. We, along with many others, wish it to remain so.”