‘More to agree about than we might think’

By Bonner County Democrats
Reader Contributors

We’ve been saying it for years — Democrats and Republicans have more to agree about than we might think. The submission by Bonner County Republican Women, Inc. [Perspectives, “Privatization of City Beach,” Jan. 9, 2025] is a great example of that. For the record, we agree entirely. City Beach is a vital part of our community, and anything that reduces our access to it fundamentally diminishes Sandpoint. 

We agree that reducing the number of parking spaces makes City Beach less accessible to people, and that the people who will be affected the most are our residents. 

We know how it is — rent and property taxes on top of inflation, with increased pressure on our infrastructure from a huge surge in growth in the county has been challenging for all of us the past couple of years. The thought of asking our residents to pay for limited access to a public space that used to be free and big enough for everyone is pretty painful. We take no comfort from the idea that this pain will benefit a handful of private property owners looking for tourist money. 

As Bonner County Democrats, we’re happy to stand up with our neighbors from any part of the political spectrum and raise our voices to demand accountability from our government. In this case, we gladly join our friends in the Bonner County Republican Women, Inc. 

We demand transparency in all processes. We welcome tourists, but we also expect that our local leaders focus on local people first, protecting the resources and public goods that make the community in which we live the kind of place people want to visit. We respect private developers as an important part of our growth and improvement as a community, but we insist that we consider the public good equally. 

Consider us co-signed. 

While we’re in agreement on City Beach, let’s take a moment and appreciate some of the other public goods in our community together. Let’s recognize the library as an important hub for the people of Bonner County, just as appreciated and just as vital to the character of our community. Let’s work together to make sure it stays strong, vibrant and (most importantly) free for all. 

Let’s remember that we all agree that a good education for all children is vital for resilient and innovative societies, like we envision for Idaho. 

Let’s find ways to ensure that the families across Bonner County who appreciate and rely on public schools to provide that education to their children can continue to make that choice and feel confident in it. 

Let’s hike, hunt, mountain bike, ski the backcountry together, and let’s ensure that the vast expanses of Idaho public lands that give us access to that amazing lifestyle remain open to everyone and preserved for our children and grandchildren. 

Let’s come together to protect our access to City Beach here in Sandpoint, and let’s keep working together for all the other public goods that we love about our community. 

After all, together we’re all “the public.” Public goods are good for all of us. 

Written by the Bonner County Democrats.