SANDPOINT — Sandpoint’s area of impact took another step toward elimination thanks to a unanimous vote at last week’s City Council meeting.

The council recommended elimination of the AOI to Bonner County, after the city’s Planning and Zoning Commission voted for the same last month. An AOI is land that is claimed by a city outside its own limits, which the city could grow into and annex, plan to zone and more. 

Sandpoint Planning and Community Development Director Jason Welker noted that an AOI does not extend a city’s jurisdiction but allows it to provide comment on and be notified of developments that might impact the city.  

Council President Deb Ruehle expressed concern that if the city eliminates its AOI, it might not receive proper notice of future developments. Welker said that the county alerts the city of new developments across the entire county. 

"There is an exhaustive list, probably 50 different entities, that the county is now regularly noticing for any development or public hearing application in the county,” Mayor Jeremy Grimm said. “It appears we are on that list.” 

Sandpoint is taking this action to bring its AOI in line with Idaho Code, which changed in 2024. The Idaho Legislature added several new caveats to area of impact, but the line that proved to be the death sentence for the city’s AOI was one that required the areas to be ‘very likely’ annexed by the city within the next five years. 

"Are we very likely to annex any of these properties within the next five years? The answer really is no,” Welker said. “We couldn’t honestly look at the [Bonner County] commissioners and say, ‘We are very likely to annex these properties.’” 

Welker said annexation is not done by cities in Idaho and the process is usually started by the property owners. He added that the elimination does not rule out any future annexation, but it would have to be requested by the owners of the property wanting to join Sandpoint. 

Sandpoint is allowed to reevaluate its AOI at any time, meaning if there was a need to expand or property owners who wanted to be annexed that the city would need to add that property to its AOI to begin the process. 

The city’s staff did try to bring a revised AOI to the Bonner County commissioners in June, which saw it shrinking significantly from its current iteration. However, the proposal was shot down with the commissioners citing the annexation statue as the main reason for denial.  

Bonner County has approved AOIs for some cities, including Ponderay and Clark Fork. Welker said that Dover is working to revise its area of impact, which was also denied by the Bonner County commissioners. 

“[Dover] has some sewer mains and infrastructure masterplans that actually show the extension of sewer and water outside of their city limits,” Welker said. “They are not proposing to eliminate it because they have some capital improvement plans that call for extension of infrastructure outside of city limits, we do not.” 

Welker said that the city has received 25 letters and much public testimony in favor of the AOI’s elimination. 

“We haven’t seen any desire from any current residents of that proposed AOI to remain in or be in an AOI,” Welker said. “The elimination has general support from the residents of that area.”