SANDPOINT — Nearly two weeks after the council voted to remove new on-street parking kiosks, questions remain over whether community members and visitors still need to use them.

Stacey Mueller, manager of the Cedar Street Bridge, said a large part of the lingering confusion is because the kiosks have remained in place despite the vote. 

Speaking for the 24 businesses at the Cedar Street Bridge, Mueller said “locals and visitors still remain confused.” 

“The communication for the changes is still unclear to the public,” said Mueller. “As a result, what is transpiring is this firestorm of misinformation and somewhat anger and questioning as to whether the city government is going to follow through with which they voted on a couple weeks ago.” 

Mueller said that, amid the confusion, local business owners are doing their best to help people navigate downtown parking. 

The kiosks were installed as part of a new parking plan approved by the council last March. 

After receiving pushback from the community for several weeks, the council voted to approve a motion by Councilor Kyle Schreiber to remove on-street parking kiosks while limiting paid parking to Sandpoint City Beach and city lots. 

To mitigate further confusion, Mueller proposed that the council announce a timeline for removing the kiosks and an informational handout for the public that explains the current parking system. 

Mayor Jeremey Grimm confirmed that the removal of kiosks is underway. 

“We are implementing the removal of those kiosks,” said Grimm, adding that the delay is partly because the parks crew that installed the kiosks remains busy during this time of year. 

For the most reliable information about the city’s parking system, Grimm directed community members to the city’s website parking signs, which indicate a free 2-hour parking period. 

Grimm also said that an extended parking session option is still available via text. 

“Those stickers are being ordered right now so we can put them on and below the signs,” said Grimm. “Any day now, we’ll have those stickers and you can extend it.”