Revisions completed for Lakeside Neighborhood Plan

UPDATED: Meeting scheduled for Nov. 2 to discuss Eagle's Crest.

The Lakeside Neighborhood Plan Committee wrapped up revisions to the plan at a meeting last week, but couldn't resolve how to respond to the withdrawal of the final phases of Eagle's Crest subdivision.

In light of the decision by the Flathead County Commissioners to revoke their approval of the preliminary plat for Eagle's Crest Subdivision Phases 5-9 last week, some members of the committee wanted to change that area on the land use map to rural residential, like most of the rest of the surrounding area.

The committee met last week for its second meeting working through the more than 50 suggested revisions to the Lakeside Neighborhood Plan from an Oct. 7 session with the Flathead County Planning Board.

The initial land use map in the Lakeside Neighborhood Plan showed the areas of Eagle's Crest Phases 5-9 with its own designation of suburban mixed since higher densities in that area had already been approved by the commissioners in 2007.

Some committee members argued that the current designation should stay, because the developer has already put in significant work and is expected to return with another application in the next year or so, said Debbie Spaulding, chair of the LNPC.

This was the only issue the committee was unable to reach consensus, Spaulding said.

The group was scheduled to pass on the revisions to the Lakeside

Community Council on Tuesday; however, the committee instead asked for

more time to look at the Eagle's Crest issue.

The revisions will come back before the council next month. It will be

up to the council to send the plan on to the county to start its formal

review.

A separate meeting has been scheduled for Monday, Nov. 2, to discuss this issue. The meeting will start at 6:30 p.m. at the Lakeside Library, located at 100 Bierney Creek Road.

The plan could still be put further on hold as a group of Lakeside and Somers property owners have a pending lawsuit and request for an injunction to stop the plan filed in the Flathead District Court.

Much of the controversy surrounds a members-only Yahoo Web site the Lakeside Neighborhood Planning Committee used to conduct business as the planning process progressed.

The full plan is available on the Flathead County Web site at http://flathead.mt.gov/planning_zoning/Drafts.php.