Rules of residency do matter

A new residency issue with the Whitefish City Council has people shaking their heads and asking: "Can it get any crazier than this?"

Just four weeks ago Whitefish settled its first residency dispute when a judge ruled that newly elected John Muhlfeld had retained his city residency and was a valid candidate, even though he essentially was living with his fiancee outside city limits.

Now a second dispute is headed to court over Martin McGrew's residency. McGrew was appointed to the council in early January after weathering an embattled election that ultimately ended in a tie with Turner Askew after the county recounted votes. McGrew hadn't even served a full month on the council when a city employee discovered McGrew's home sits on county property and only the vacant portion of his lot is in the city.

The council did the right thing by determining that McGrew wasn't validly elected. He'll have two weeks to prove his case in court; otherwise he's out and Askew is in.

McGrew says he's suing to retain his seat, but the matter seems fairly black and white, at least on the surface. His home is on county property and he has been paying county taxes on that portion of the lot. State law requires council candidates to be city residents for 60 days prior to the election, and McGrew simply wasn't a city resident at that time. Keeping him on the council makes the city vulnerable to lawsuits challenging any of his votes.

At Monday's meeting, McGrew said he was unaware of the discrepancy because his mortgage company pays his property taxes. He also admitted that "ignorance is no excuse," but vowed to not go out without a fight.

For all practical purposes, McGrew has acted as a city resident, voting in city elections, using city water and paying city taxes on part of his property. He served as chairman of the Whitefish City-County Planning Board as a city appointee. Whether or not this will be enough to salvage his council seat is up to the court.

Whatever clerical error it was that tripped up McGrew's chance to serve, the turn of events is unfortunate for both McGrew and the city. If McGrew is forced to step down, we encourage him to stay involved. He's a dedicated civic leader, and there are plenty of other opportunities to serve on city committees until the next council election.

WHITEFISH isn't the only city struggling with residency issues. A case involving the mayor of Troy is the focus of a lawsuit in Lincoln County. When the mayor moved to a home about a half-mile from Troy city limits, he restored his residency by having the city annex his property, even though it's surrounded by county land and isn't connected to city utilities.

Former Mayor Tony Brown claims that's just plain wrong, even though the current mayor's lawyer says the annexation was "perfectly statutory." Brown sued the city to negate the annexation. We'll see what the court decides.

All of these cases are a reminder that politics - even local politics - can be a fickle thing. Residency matters. We want people representing us who lawfully live where they're supposed to, especially in high-growth communities such as Whitefish, where council decisions stand to dramatically shape the city's future.