COEUR d'ALENE — The Coeur d'Alene City Council recently approved annexing a previously unincorporated piece of property on Blackwell Island into the city.

Marina Yacht Club LLC, a subsidiary of the Hagadone Corp., made the annexation request for the land it owns and leases to the entities that operate The Cedars Floating Restaurant and Hagadone Marine Center. During a public hearing prior to the council vote, John Barlow, a consultant for the Hagadone Corp., explained the annexation was pursued for the southern end of the island at the confluence of the Spokane River and Lake Coeur d'Alene to allow the marina and restaurant to connect to city water and sewer services.

"The marina and restaurant businesses have been very successful and growing," Barlow told the council, noting several million dollars have been spent improving operations at the marina over the past year. "We've basically outgrown our utilities and we feel that it's time for us to annex and be part of the city."

The annexation request encompasses 172-acres, 24 of which are on Blackwell Island itself, with the remainder on the lake and river. Annexation on the island was attempted in 2006 when condos, shops and offices were proposed. However, the effort was halted when then-Mayor Sandi Bloem cast a tie-breaking vote against bringing the property into Coeur d'Alene.

Barlow told the council that, since the previous annexation attempt, the investments the company has made into the existing businesses and infrastructure on the island are "real and fulfilled," and show the company is committed to continuing to operate the same businesses on the land. Those improvements, he added, include upgrades to the service building, stormwater runoff, curbing, added parking and an expanded sales area with improved lighting.

Future plans for the island will allow boats to be dry stacked, which allows vessels to be stored in bays on land and out of the sun. Barlow said the summer storage method is a trend and boat owners are able to have their boats on the water and ready to ride within a few hours’ notice.

Shoreline improvements are planned for that area of the island as well, Barlow said. He added inclusion of the waterway portion in the annexation request was "primarily" for the benefit of the city because it transfers jurisdiction of the waterway.

Sworn public testimony was given during the hearing. Multiple individuals testified during the allocated time that, although they were not opposed to the annexation itself, they were concerned the annexation would lead to the limitation of public access and create precedent for future developments on the shoreline.

"To pass this would be of great benefit to the city of Coeur d'Alene, and the taxpayers," said Councilman Ron Edinger, following further discussion on the merits of the annexation.

The council voted 5-1 in favor of annexation, with Councilman Dan Gookin opposed.

• In other council news, two parking-related resolutions were unanimously approved. The first will give Deputy City Administrator Sam Taylor the authority to review, and then approve or deny, appeals of parking tickets. Reviewing the appeals was previously handled by a member of the city's Parking Commission, on a rotating basis, but there was concern expressed by the volunteer commission that the old method lacked consistency.

The other resolution allocates $6,776.04 for the purposes of mailing letters to those with unpaid parking tickets, encouraging them to pay before the matter is sent to a collections agency.