Planners consider project in Somers
The Daily Inter Lake
A 195-lot subdivision proposed near Somers is one of four projects that come before the Flathead County Planning Board for public hearings today.
Meadowbrook Place would feature 76 single-family lots, 32 premium lots, one common lot and 86 duplex townhouse units on 52 acres immediately east of the Somers Elementary School, between Sunnybrook Lane and Somers Road.
The lots would range from 0.08 acres (about 3,500 square feet) to 3.79 acres in size. The project would be connected to public water and sewer service. Primary access would be via Somers Road.
An environmental assessment submitted with the application estimates that, at full build-out, Meadowbrook Place would generate about 1,100 vehicle trips per day during the week, and almost 1,700 trips a day Saturday.
The assessment also suggested that all the roads serving this property "are in satisfactory condition and are capable of handling the increase in traffic. Minimal additional maintenance should occur for the county."
County Road Superintendent Charlie Johnson, however, submitted a letter raising concerns about the narrow widths of Somers Road and School Addition Road.
The Montana Department of Transportation also raised concerns about how the additional traffic would be channeled onto Montana 82 and U.S. 93.
The Planning Office added a condition requiring the developer to upgrade portions of the two roads to a 24-foot standard.
Other items on today's agenda include:
-The preliminary plat of Crown Jewel Estates, a 27-lot subdivision on 40 acres at 3855 Lower Valley Road.
The county commissioners denied this project in September. However, after an emergency access easement was added and other minor modifications were proposed, they agreed to reconsider it.
It's being sent back to the Planning Board for further review.
Lots in the subdivision would be served by a public water system and individual septics, and would range from 0.36 acres to 0.92 acres in size.
The application indicates that the property owner is willing to place a deed restriction on the adjoining 117 acres (or at least a majority of this property), to ensure that it remains in permanent agricultural production.
-The preliminary plat of Stage Road River Estates Phase III, a 12-lot single-family subdivision on 40 acres at 2660 Columbia Falls Stage Road.
-The preliminary plat of Ridgeview Park, a five-lot commercial subdivision on 5.3 acres off Montana 82, near the intersection with Montana 35.
All the lots would be connected to public water and sewer service.
The Planning Board meets at 6 p.m. in the second-floor conference room of the Earl Bennett Building.