Commissioners Cogitate Over Consumption by Car

By Cate Huisman, 11-05-09

The Sandpoint City Council hit a hot button last year when it proposed a temporary restriction on the construction of drive-through fast-food places. Council members wanted some time to consider how this kind of land use fit with the newly minted Comprehensive Plan, and the city had sprouted a drive-through Jack-in-the-Box while the plan was being cogitated over. Shortly thereafter, a corrugated metal farm shed turned up next to Highway 2 that turned out to be a drive-through convenience store.

After the ban was passed, certain members of the community vehemently voiced their disapproval, and one owner of a restaurant that had both drive-through and sit-down options posted a notice on the order counter suggesting that the city planning director go back to where he came from, inspiring some other community members to dine elsewhere.

So it’s no surprise that the city’s Planning and Zoning commission, charged with drafting the zoning regulations that will implement the Comprehensive Plan, wrestled mightily with this issue at their meeting Tuesday night. None of them anticipates that a permanent citywide ban will stay in place, recognizing that city residents will want to retain the option to eat without having to get out of their cars, especially in the winter months. However, the Comprehensive Plan directs that the central parts of the city be more oriented toward pedestrians, and the commission has to consider the extent to which car-oriented businesses are consistent with this direction. Hence the regulations the commission drafted continue the ban in the downtown area and restrict the imposition of such drive-throughs outside the downtown in areas that are within 100 feet of residences.

The regulations still have to go through public hearings and city council meetings before they are implemented, and the process is sure to generate enough hot air to lower municipal heating bills for any room in which the issue is discussed.