North Lake County zoning regulations discussed

It’s 46 printed pages and years in the making, and on the evening of Wednesday, Sept. 28, members of the north lake county community were finally able to see a draft of the proposed North Lake County Planning and Zoning Regulations.

During the community meeting held at Bethany Lutheran Church in Bigfork, Leslie Budewitz — one of the volunteers who has spearheaded the effort to establish zoning regulations in the north lake county area — explained the history behind the project, presented the first part of the draft and accepted public input.

“The overall goal is to provide the framework to preserve the community as we know and love it,” Budewitz said. “We call this document ‘zoning light’ because it represents what we feel is the least amount of regulations possible.”

If adopted by the county, the regulations would affect an approximately 37-square-mile area encompassing Woods Bay and the northern part of Swan Lake. If the regulations are put into effect, the volunteer group will also organize a formal committee to review land applications and give community members the opportunity to voice their concerns over land use proposals during the pre-application and application processes.

In Budewitz’s mind, the earlier the public has the opportunity to get involved with the process, the better.

“We recognize that it’s an extra step for the applicant, but it would also be of benefit to them because they would be able to hear concerns and objections earlier,” Budewitz said.

According to Budewitz the group would be similar to the Bigfork Land Use Advisory Committee, but she stressed that Flathead County’s zoning and land use system is considerably different from the system currently in place in Lake County.

“In Flathead County, there is one set of zoning regulations for the entire county, and each district within the county has a neighborhood plan, which is basically a set of guidelines on how to apply those regulations,” Budewitz said. “But the Lake County system allows for each district to have its own regulations, and those regulations are binding.”

Budewitz prefers the Lake County system to the Flathead County system because it offers more flexibility.

“It’s good because there are different conditions in different places,” Budewitz said.

The proposed draft includes regulations for four separate classifications of land zones: highway commercial, commercial crossroads, waterfront residential and residential/agricultural/forest.

The category that generated the most public comment at last Wednesday’s meeting was highway commercial, particularly as it would apply to the cluster of businesses along Montana Highway 35 in Woods Bay.

“We didn’t really know what to suggest for (the commercial uses in) Woods Bay,” Budewitz said. “We could possibly leave it the way it is with the existing commercial properties grandfathered in, or we could create a commercial district of whatever size people want on Highway 35.”

Most residents in attendance at the meeting were against designating the area as a commercial district, as it would open it up to “commercial fill-in.”

Although the lack of a sewer system in Woods Bay has prevented large-scale commercial development in the area, the installation of sewer lines in the future could lead to rapid commercial growth if left unregulated.

Budewitz said she and other members of the volunteer group would take those concerns into consideration as they move forward with the adoption of the draft.

Public discussion of the draft will continue at a meeting at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 19 at Bethany Lutheran Church.