Sandpoint gained national media attention — but not the kind it wanted — 30 years ago when news broke that Mark Fuhrman wanted to buy a house there.

Fuhrman, of course, is the infamous LAPD detective who lied under oath about past racist comments during the double murder trial of O.J. Simpson.

Fuhrman did buy a house in Sandpoint, on Euclid Avenue, and the media camped out in front of it. He said he’d planned to move to North Idaho for some time, like many other retired — and almost retired — police officers from California.

And that raised two questions: Why were so many former California cops retiring here? Were they racist? After all, some speculated, North Idaho had few minorities and had attracted Aryan Nations founder Richard Butler and white separatist Randy Weaver of Ruby Ridge infamy.

In a Coeur d’Alene Press article Jan. 29, 1995, transplanted California cops responded to the suggestion with a resounding: “No!”

“I didn’t give race any thought when I moved here,” said Harvey Zion, a retired South Lake Tahoe cop. “I figured they just have less people here, so they have less crime and less of everything.”

Jim Peasha, a Bonner County DARE officer and an LAPD veteran, bristled at the thought of racism: “I don’t like the label. When I was working in Watts or East L.A., there was no racism involved when I arrested someone. I arrested them because they were criminals.”

Others said the camaraderie among law enforcement lured them here.

“One person moves up and encourages their friends to come, too,” said Tom Heise, another retired LAPD officer who was working as a Coeur d’Alene Realtor at the time. “It’s easier coming to somewhere where you know people, and they can help you make contacts and adjustments.

Ex-California cops, according to Heise, described Coeur d’Alene “as sort of like finding your Shangri-la, but not totally Daniel Boone-ing it.”

Fighting words

Many in this country can’t tell the difference between Iowa and Idaho.

But Iowans know when an Idahoan insults them. They proved that 30 years ago when an offhand remark by Jobs Plus president Bob Potter riled them.

At the time, Kootenai County and Waterloo, Iowa, were among 13 communities in seven states on the shortlist to land a $1.3 billion Micron Technology plant expansion.

According to the Coeur d’Alene Press of Jan. 27, 1995, blunt-talking Potter spiced up the finals by telling the Des Moines Register: “I can’t imagine Micron in Waterloo. Who would want to live there?”

The jab made the Register’s popular “Quote of the Week” column. And it “left a bad taste in people’s mouths,” said Waterloo spokesman Arthur Hellum, whose city responded by buying a half-page ad in The Press, inviting Potter to visit.

Surprised by the fuss, Potter apologized and accepted the invitation.

“Napoleon went to Waterloo,” he said. “And I don’t recall he had a hell of a good time.”

Ultimately, the flap was all for nothing. Micron awarded the expansion project to Lehi, Utah.

Paid in full

Former councilman Mike Kennedy still regrets that our renowned Coeur d’Alene Public Library doesn’t have a third floor.

But there’s a strong chance that we wouldn’t have a new library if the extra space — and cost — had been included in the library bond measure of Feb. 1, 2005. Two-thirds approval was required to pass the $3 million bond. And the referendum mustered 68.2% support or a slim approval margin of 67 votes.

A $7 million public safety bond on the same ballot received 73.85% support.

On election night, Kennedy exhaled: “We don’t have a landslide, but we have a new library.”

Grants and fundraisers provided the rest of the cash for the $6.7 million project.

Still, Kennedy, visionary that he is, longs for a third floor “for future growth and other stuff.” Sometimes, he said: “Half a loaf is better than none.”

And better yet? Soon, the city will pay off the 20-year bond.

On fire

As the 60th annual Fireman’s Ball approached Feb. 1, 1970, Fire Chief Joe Turk offered Press readers a Cliff Notes history of his department:

The town, comprised of shacks and shanties that dominated part of Tony Tubbs’s original homestead, had a population of 491 in 1890.

One of the first major fires occurred in 1890 when the Opera House at Fourth and Wallace burned.

In 1902, a fire alarm system using sawmill whistles was devised.

Early-day mill fires were frequent; one mill burned down three times in four years.

The fire department was established by city ordinance Sept. 29, 1910, with a paid fire chief (J.H. O’Rourke), first and second chiefs and nine volunteers.

In 1932, the Kootenai County Fire Protective District No. 1 was created.

Huckleberries

• Poet’s Corner: He fished upon a frozen lake;/he knew the ice was strong;/they pulled him out on June the eighth —/it turned out he was wrong — The Bard of Sherman Avenue (“A Cautionary Tale for Sportsmen”).

• Safety First: Before golf balls flew over the water to the floating green, The Coeur d’Alene Resort golf course site was used to saw lumber. And the 300 workers at Potlatch’s old Rutledge mill did so safely. On Jan. 11, 1965, the mill completed a full year of operation without a single lost-time injury. Managers awarded hams and turkeys to celebrate.

• Some Snowman: On Jan. 31, 1975, the Gittel boys — brothers Ron and Scott and their cousin Rick — finished the Grand Daddy of all Snowmen. They had worked on the 15-foot Frosty since Jan. 5. The sculptors needed 20 large snowballs just to make the head. The Press didn’t say if the snowman awakened. So, the boys probably didn’t find a silk hat.

• On This Day: On Feb. 2, 2000, Spokane developer John Stone predicted he would transform the old W-I sawmill into a commercial/residential mecca unlike any in the region. Coeur d’Alene’s popularity, he said, will spur development. “Coeur d’Alene," he said, "has a sense of community that doesn’t exist in Spokane or the Spokane Valley.”

• Did You Know: On Jan. 22, 1965, two cars of a 14-unit Great Northern train derailed in front of what is now The Coeur d’Alene Resort? The tracks skirted Sherman Avenue for two blocks before running down the center of Front Avenue to the Rutledge Mill. Some might say that downtown Coeur d’Alene was a better place with trains of yore than the high-rises of today.

Parting shot

In the good old days, Coeur d’Alene raised funds and partied at the same time. On Jan. 28, 1955, high school bands from Lake City and Rathdrum serenaded Miss Inland Empire Winnie Puis as she began a walk for the March of Dimes from the KVNI station here to the Davenport Hotel in Spokane. The 17-year-old from Waukon, Wash., hoped to raise 200,000 dimes for the charity. On behalf of the Coeur d’Alene chamber, manager Kyle Walker jump-started the teen’s long haul by giving her a check for $500. The first individual donation came from Joyce Molstead of Wolf Lodge, a North Idaho College student who’d made a full recovery from polio. With a police escort, the volunteer pedestrian had lunch at Post Falls, where state patrolman William Teter told The Press: “She’s still going strong.” And so is the spirit of community and fun in our City with a Heart today.

• • •

D.F. (Dave) Oliveria can be contacted at dfo@cdapress.com.

    In 1995, retired California officer Harvey Zion enjoys his quality of life in North Idaho.
  

    In 1995, Jobs Plus president Bob Potter offends Waterloo, Iowa.
  

    In 2005, Judi Messina celebrates with fellow members of the Coeur d’Alene Public Library Foundation after the library bond win.
  

    In 1965, Fire Chief Joe Turk, standing second from left, watches as Penney manager Ernie Meyer buys 25 tickets to the 55th annual Firemen’s Ball. Also watching are, from left: assistant store manager Irvin Haws and firemen Ray Capaul and Tom Tyree. Five years later, Turk unveiled a brief history of the CFD.
  

    In 1965, Rutledge Mill managers celebrate a year without a lost-man accident. From left, Roger Carlson, Neill Gebhart, Gardner Teall and Gene Jolin.
  

    In 1975, Ron Gittel, 16, grooms a 15-foot Coeur d’Alene snowman.
  

    In 2000, developer Ron Stone displays a drawing of his 73-acre Riverstone development.
  

    In 1965, a Great Northern Train derails between The Desert Hotel and Templin’s restaurant on Sherman Avenue (near The Coeur d’Alene Resort clock tower today).
  

    In 1955, Miss Inland Empire Winnie Lou Puis, left center, is flanked by Coeur d’Alene High track star Rotchy Barker and Joyce Molstead, on crutches, as she begins her long walk to Spokane for the March of Dimes.