SANDPOINT — Sandpoint residents have taken the first step in an effort to recall Sandpoint Mayor Jeremy Grimm and Sandpoint council president Deb Ruehle over a controversial decision to implement paid parking in downtown Sandpoint. Certified petitioners were advised Friday, July 24, that they could begin efforts to recall Grimm and Ruehle from their elected positions within the city, according to a letter approved by Bonner County Clerk Michael Rosedale.  

At the time of publishing, petitions to recall councilmembers Joel Aispuro, Pam Duquette, Kyle Schreiber, Joe Tate and Joshua Torrez have not been filed.  

According to a letter from the Bonner County Clerk’s office, petitioners have until Oct. 7, 2026, to collect 1,048 certified signatures from Sandpoint residents to validate the petition. If the clerk’s office can certify all the signatures, one or both would be notified and have five business days from the notice date to resign.  

If the applicable elected official does not resign, an election will take place, where petitions must obtain one more vote than what the elected official received at the previous election to be officially removed from office.  

At the time of election, Sandpoint voters will need 1,177 votes and 1,080 votes to recall Grimm and Ruehle, respectively. 

The petition request comes after Sandpoint City Council approved paid parking in downtown Sandpoint. After the council adopted the plan last summer, issues surrounding the program have been widely debated by Sandpoint and Bonner County residents. Many individuals attended council meetings and took to social media to voice the negative effects the program would have on the city.

On July 1, the city's new parking program went into effect, and community members gathered at the Church Street city lot to protest the changes. 

Technical issues and poor communication left many community members frustrated, and several downtown business owners grew concerned, with one business owner saying her company's personal sales had fallen by 64% compared to the same period last year since the rollout. 

Nearly two weeks after the program's rollout, the council voted to scale back on enforcement at the July 15 council meeting, limiting paid parking to Sandpoint City Beach and city lots, while parking kiosks in free two-hour zones remain disabled until a revised motion can be presented at the next meeting.

On July 24, local resident Ryan Ryebreadloh said in a social media post that work to recall the pair now begins. 

“After a whole lot of shenanigans related to getting the form formatted correctly, the recall of Grimm and Ruehle has been triggered,” Ryebreadloh said in the post. 

While it appears the council will pass the updated parking ordinance on Aug. 5, Ryebreadloh said in the post that the recall will move forward. 

“The people of Sandpoint deserve to have their elected officials held accountable,” she added. 

The last successful recall in Bonner County took place on Aug. 29, 2023, after voters approved the recall of West Bonner School District trustees Keith Rutledge and Susan Brown, according to Idaho Education News.

    Ruehle