SANDPOINT - Bonner County commissioners unanimously agreed on Tuesday to accept a 9-mile stretch of road at Priest Lake that deviates from county design standards in nearly a half-dozen respects.

Commissioners justified the inclusion of East Shore Road into the county's maintenance program by citing a series of factors which included topography, public safety, the road's classification and the prospect of losing a substantial amount of tax revenue.

Commission Chairman Cary Kelly called the set of circumstances a "perfect storm" for accepting the route after a two-hour hearing on variances from design standards.

The county does not accept roads into its maintenance program if they are not brought to meet county standards.

The stretch of East Shore Road between Indian Creek Bridge and Canoe Point Road has been privately maintained by a cooperative composed of the Idaho Department of Lands, Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation and real estate developer Huckleberry Bay Co. since 1991.

The winding road was etched onto mountainsides on the east side of the lake in the 1950s to facilitate IDL logging projects. It also leads people to the state's Lions Head campground at the north end of the lake and provides access to state-owned lease lots.

"Things have changed a lot at Priest Lake," said David White, Parks' northern region manager.

White said the number of visitors has steadily increased and the types of visitors has broadened over the years. Lions Head attracted 9,000 day users in 1998, but now draws 131,000 day users in a year.

The number of campers coming to the park has increased 73 percent, White said.

"There's been a substantial increase in traffic," said Mick Schanilec, IDL's area manager at Priest Lake.

More than $500,000 has been spent on maintaining the road since the cooperative's inception, according to Tom Barbieri, president of Huckleberry Bay. The state agencies, meanwhile, are not structured to fund substantial road-maintenance activities.

The cooperative argued that the road is in good enough shape to be accepted for public maintenance and is proposing another $200,000 in improvements, which include widening the Two Mouth Creek Bridge and improving a turnaround at Canoe Point.

Public reaction was mixed during the hearing, with some contending accepting the road would draw resources away from other roads in the program. Others pointed out that they were paying the Road and Bridge tax but receiving little to nothing to show for it.

"The safety of the road is my biggest concern," Jim Brausen said, referring to the road's notoriously icy conditions in winter.

Commissioner Mike Nielsen recommended approval of the variances for financial reasons. It's estimated that annual Road and Bridge tax revenue will reach $250,000 as the state divests itself of lease lots.

Moreover, the cooperative confirmed that it is in talks with the Independent Highway District to take over maintenance if the county declines, which means the highway district would receive the tax revenue.

"We're giving up an awful lot if we don't take it," Nielsen said.

Kelly said public safety and challenging topography were also factors.

"There's no doubt that the traffic has increased tremendously," Kelly said.

Commissioner Glen Bailey felt that granting the variances would grant a special privilege.

"That is a concern," Bailey said.

However, the road's classification as a collector route also gave the board some cover. Most of the roads the public is clamoring for acceptance into the program are local access routes.

The board ultimately granted variances from design standards involving road width, curve radii, road base construction and slope ratios for roadside embankments. It also declined to impose a condition of approval which would have required the installation of a hot mix asphalt overlay on the 9 miles of road.

The cooperative agreed to repair 750 feet of failing roadway. The group has two years to complete all the improvements before the road is formally accepted for public maintenance.