New Station Likely To Get Council Ok Approval Also Expected On Third Street Launch Fees

A $2.8 million police station likely will get final approval from the City Council at its regular meeting tonight.

Ground-breaking could be as early as August. The new station should be ready for badges and blue uniforms by spring 1999.

The police have been in the basement of City Hall since the late 1970s. The new building is expected to have enough room for the police force until at least 2018.

Launch fees for people who use the popular Third Street boat dock also are likely to get council approval tonight. The Parks and Recreation Commission is recommending Idaho residents be charged $3 per time, or $30 a season, to use the boat launch.

The proposal calls for out-of-state residents to pay $6 per time, or $60 per season. In-state residents would be charged less because they already are paying part of the maintenance costs through taxes, city officials say.

The money will be used for things such as rebuilding the seawall and other improvements to the area.

The state charges $2 per launch at Higgens Point. The Bureau of Land Management is expected to charge at its proposed Blackwell Island launch.

In other business the council:

Will discuss the need to set aside $126,539 for landscaping at the Northwest Boulevard and Interstate 90 interchange and the I-90 and U.S. Highway 95 interchange. That money represents 20 percent of the cost. The city is seeking a federal grant to cover the rest of the tab.

Will probably make minor changes to fireworks regulations to bring city law in line with the latest state law. The primary change is setting May 15 as the deadline for applying for a permit to sell fireworks.

, DataTimes MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: COUNCIL The Coeur d’Alene City Council now meets beginning at 6 p.m. at City Hall.