Flathead County Board of Adjustment

The Flathead County Board of Adjustment will have expanded regulatory discretion over gravel pits through a zoning regulation change approved Wednesday by the county commissioners.

The text amendment defines all zoning districts that allow residential uses - including agricultural districts and special districts with neighborhood plans - as "residential zones," but only when it comes to the regulation of gravel pits or asphalt and concrete plants.

Gravel pit operations are prohibited outright in areas with "residential" zoning titles.

But in the suburban agricultural and agricultural zones, those operations can be permitted through the Board of Adjustment's conditional use process, or they can be prohibited in cases where "the negative impacts … on the surrounding area cannot be reasonably mitigated."

"Everything from SAG-5 to AG-80 allows for single family residential and therefore is determined to be 'residential' for purposes of regulating gravel pit operations," Deputy County Attorney Jonathan Smith said.

Commissioners Gary Hall and Joe Brenneman voted for the amendment. Commissioner Bob Watne was absent.

Brenneman said the text amendment "is about as good as it's going to get," in light of the conflicting interests related to gravel pits.

Brenneman referred to the paradox of conflicting property rights of landowners who want to develop gravel pits and neighboring landowners who don't want gravel mines near their homes.

The amendment gives the Board of Adjustment the discretion and flexibility to arbitrate those conflicts, he said.

He acknowledged that the amendment may not be the perfect remedy to what has become a controversial issue in the Flathead, but he said it is not necessarily permanent.

"We're attempting to put forth the best thing we can right now," he said, adding that if in a year "we find there's a better way," the commissioners can change the policy.

The decision appeared to be acceptable to interested parties attending the morning meeting, but Hall noted that the commissioners may receive objections during a 30-day period for written protests.

"I think it's acceptable," said Alrick Hale, general manager for JTL Group, a local paving contractor and gravel-pit operator.

Hale said JTL supported a recent law change that affirmed the ability of counties to regulate gravel pit operations through conditional uses.

Paving industry officials had expressed concern that the text amendment could lead to blanket prohibitions against any new pits, regardless of how abundant the resource, simply because they're located near someone's home.

Jerry Nix, the lead plaintiff in a lawsuit related to a JTL gravel pit east of Kalispell, said the amendment "is as good a compromise as I think we could reach."

Gravel pits have been a hot issue in the valley for the last several months, ever since Zoning Administrator Forrest Sanderson ruled that the county couldn't prohibit or even impose conditions on new gravel pits unless they were located in residential zoning districts.

The ruling, which was later upheld by the Board of Adjustment, prompted one lawsuit and spurred efforts to change state law.

The result was House Bill 591, which was signed into law after receiving broad support from both the gravel industry and concerned citizens.

The bill reaffirmed local governments' authority to prohibit gravel mines in residential zoning districts and clarified that they can impose reasonable restrictions on pits located in all other zones.

The legislation didn't define what was meant by residential. That was left up to individual counties, leading to Wednesday's decision by the Flathead commissioners.

Reporter Jim Mann may be reached at 758-4407 or by e-mail at jmann@dailyinterlake.com