Guidelines proposed for new growth amendments

The Flathead County Planning Office is proposing that all new growth policy amendments submitted in the next 15 months be required to satisfy a series of conditions before they'll be processed.

The interim policy was developed at the request of the county commissioners. It will go to the Flathead County Planning Board on Aug. 3 for further review and public comment.

The policy is intended to help the county cope with new growth policy amendments, at a time when it's struggling to complete an overall growth policy update.

Planning Director Jeff Harris discussed the proposal with the planning board on Wednesday. If approved, all new amendment applications would have to satisfy the following conditions:

. They can't include any area that's been subject to a previous amendment within the last four years.

"We don't want to amend an amendment," Harris said. "They should refer to an entirely new area."

. The proposed density for the area can't be more than what's already reflected in the growth policy and/or zoning regulations.

. They have to cover more than 200 acres, unless they're pre-approved by the planning office.

"The idea is to discourage a bunch of small amendments, unless they really make sense," Harris said.

. They must include pre-approval letters from any service providers, such as schools or public sewer and water districts.

"We're seeing too many amendments that say they may or may not connect to public sewer," Harris noted. "We want to know that up front."

. There can't be any "holes." All land located inside the boundaries of the proposed amendment must be included in the application. The boundaries should also follow well-defined markers, such as road, rivers or other jurisdictional boundaries.

. The application should address the area located within a half-mile of the amendment boundaries, to show compatibility with adjacent land uses, road systems and infrastructure.

. The amendment must address the same statutory requirements that the updated growth policy will address.

. The application must be complete when submitted; incomplete applications would be returned and couldn't be resubmitted for six months.

. Finally, the planning office is recommending that applicants be required to hold at least one public meeting to take input from any neighbors, stakeholders and citizen groups who might be affected by the proposal.

A second public meeting would also be required, in which the draft amendment would be presented to the neighbors, prior to submitting it to the planning office for processing.

New amendment applications would only be accepted during the first week of any month.

Harris made it clear that this was just a proposal. He encouraged the board to consider alternatives prior to the Aug. 3 meeting.

He also indicated that he welcomed public input prior to that meeting, which will be held in the second-floor conference room at the Earl Bennett Building, beginning at 6 p.m.

Additional public comment will be taken during the meeting, after which the board will make a recommendation to the county commissioner.

The planning office currently has three growth policy amendments awaiting processing, including a 2,800-acre amendment that would allow higher-density commercial and residential development on properties located west of U.S. 93 and east of West Springcreek Road.

The interim policy would not apply to these three amendments. If approved, it would affect all new applications, until such time as the overall growth policy is updated.

Copies of the interim policy are available at the planning office.

Reporter Bill Spence may be reached at 758-4459 or by e-mail at bspence@dailyinterlake.com