North Shore Ranch developers sue county
By ALEX STRICKLAND/Bigfork Eagle
Following a 2-1 vote by the Flathead County Commissioners last month to deny a 286-lot subdivision near Somers, the developers of the North Shore Ranch have filed a civil complaint against the county seeking a reversal of its decision.
Bill VanCanagan, the attorney representing Kleinhans Farms Estates LLC, said the suit was "unfortunate but necessary" according to a press release given out by Gallatin Public Affairs, a public relations firm hired by the developers.
The complaint said that Commissioners Gary Hall and Joe Brenneman stated "as a matter of policy" that the commission could not approve construction on land where a flood easement exists.
The complaint contends that the term was to be taken literally and that no such policy exists in Flathead County.
Brenneman told the Daily Inter Lake that his comment was not meant to imply there was an existing statute.
"It's my opinion that it's not a good idea for public agencies to be approving subdivisions on property with flood easements," he said.
Flood easements played a prominent role in discussions during the commission's April 23 meeting in Kalispell after it had come to light in a Planning Board meeting that Pacific Power and Light, the company that operates Kerr Dam at the foot of Flathead Lake, inherited easements from previous owners all around the lake that essentially enable the company to flood those properties without liability.
"This decision by the County Commission impacts more than just one developer and one project. This could potentially be the largest taking of land in Flathead County," VanCanagan said.
The civil complaint contends the commission's decision was not based on the law and contradicted the facts provided to the commission in the county's staff report produced by the Flathead County Planning and Zoning Office.
Hall cited concerns about the Flathead Lake Waterfowl Production Area that abuts the subdivision as well as a geological report that found the sandy soil at the northern edge of the lake could be prone to a phenomenon called liquefaction during a seismic event. Liquefaction is when an earthquake causes soil to act like a liquid.
Brenneman called the developers' efforts "Herculean" at the April meeting, but said he couldn't approve a project that had flood easements on it.
"Subdivision regulations are clear. If a developer meets all the requirements, the county must approve the project," VanCanagan said. "They not only met the requirements, they exceeded them. The work the developers undertook on the project is unprecedented."
Kleinhans Farms Estates, headed by Sean Averill and Keith Simon of Whitefish, had planned to set aside about 50 percent of the property as open space, including a 74-acre conservation easement adjacent to the WPA.