COEUR D’ALENE, Idaho — The executive board of a Boy Scouts organization facing a lawsuit over the proposed sale of a historic northern Idaho campsite has decided to move forward with the deal.
The Coeur d’Alene Press reports that the Inland Northwest Council of Boy Scouts’ executive board voted 24-6 on Wednesday to begin negotiations with Discovery Land Company. The council’s seven-member foundation board still must vote on the matter before the land swap plan can move forward. That vote is set for next Wednesday.
Under the plan, the Boy Scouts would swap Camp Easton on Lake Coeur d’Alene’s Gotham Bay for property on Sunup Bay, where Discovery has offered to build a new and better camp. Some scouting families and neighbors of the Easton campsite have sued to stop the trade, contending the land was donated with the condition of being used as a camp in perpetuity.
Scout Executive Tim McCandless said the board members investigated the project and read the results of a survey sent out to constituents before voting.
“This was the most comprehensive decision I’ve seen an executive board make,” McCandless said.
Some doubts have been raised over whether the development company would be able to provide the Sunup property and a $2.5 million endowment fund as promised. Mountain West Bank, the current owner of the Ridge at Sunup Bay property, sued Discovery last year claiming that the development company breached a $4.5 million purchase agreement for the land.
McCandless said the council wanted to decide if the project was worth pursuing before trying to determine if Discovery is capable of holding up its end of the deal, and a favorable vote by the foundation would kick off that process.
“Now we’re getting into the nitty gritty to address these concerns that are very valid,” McCandless said.
Carl Eaton, vice chair of the INC Old Mission District that encompasses Kootenai County, said he has heard passionate opposition against the proposal as well as arguments in support of a new site.
Should the next vote be favorable, Eaton said he hopes to see evidence that the proposal is valid.
“So far, it’s been all smoke and mirrors. We’ve not had a firm offer,” Eaton said. “Now we can get the facts on the table, see what we’re looking at. I think a large percent of people in Kootenai County want to see the facts.”
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
