Elections ahead for land-use group

| December 14, 2005 1:00 AM

The Daily Inter Lake

The Bigfork Land Use Advisory Committee will convert from an appointed board to an elected body, effective next June.

Following a request from the Bigfork community, the commissioners approved the change last week.

The seven-member committee holds public hearings and provides recommendations to the Flathead County Planning Board on subdivision proposals and other land-use changes in the Bigfork area.

Members have been appointed since the committee was established in 1995.

In recent months, however, the committee has become a focal point for disagreements over the direction the community is taking. Given the tremendous amount of growth in the Bigfork area, some people said an elected board will better represent their interests.

Rather than having all seven positions up for election at the same time, new members will be voted in on a rotating basis. Three members will be elected during the school election next May; two more will be elected in 2007, with the final two positions coming up for election in 2008.

After that, two positions will be up for election each year. A seventh member at large will be selected by board annually.

To facilitate the transition to an elected board, terms for the existing members will be extended. The terms that were set to expire on Dec. 31, 2005, will be extended to May 31, 2006; terms that expire in December 2006 will be extended to May 31, 2007; and terms that expire in December 2007 will be extended to May 31, 2008.

Anyone interested in being elected to the committee should file a nominating petition with the Flathead County Election Department at least 40 days prior to the election, which takes place on the first Tuesday following the first Monday in May.

The petition must contain signatures from five citizens who are registered to vote in Flathead County. Qualified nominees must also have lived within the Bigfork land-use district for a minimum of two years.

For more information, call the Flathead County Planning Office at 751-8200.