Flathead lakeshore zone OK'd

One-acre lots approved for new district

By LYNNETTE HINTZE/Daily Inter Lake

A new zoning district along Flathead Lake that limits development to one-acre lots won unanimous approval Thursday from the county commissioners.

The Fish Hatchery Zoning District - a proposal shepherded through the planning process by Steve and Sherry Leicht, Kathy Mercord and Dick and Carrie Taylor - had the support of 70 percent of property owners who signed a petition in favor of the R-1 zoning.

The 132-acre district, between the Somers Fish Hatchery and Pineview Lane and bordered on the west by U.S. 93, has long been a residential neighborhood of mostly cabins and homes on wooded lakeshore lots.

Development along the northern tier of the district, particularly in the South Juniper Bay Road area, has been more dense. The recently created Old Highway 93 Shoreline Zoning District to the north has R-2 zoning, allowing 20,000-square-foot lots. But across the highway from the Fish Hatchery district, R-1 zoning has been put in place.

Neighbors in the Fish Hatchery Zoning District were worried about the potential intrusion from both commercial uses and residential condominium projects that could come in without zoning, planner Andrew Hagemeier said. One-acre lots, with a minimum size of 43,000 square feet, are consistent with the county growth policy and Lakeside neighborhood plan, he added.

R-1 zoning in the new district will allow 48 new lots, while R-2 would allow 167 new lots, Hagemeier said.

Many people testified in support of the new zoning district during the commissioners' hearing. The traffic hazard in accessing busy U.S. 93 was one argument for keeping the neighborhood less dense; the potential for more lake pollution with denser zoning was another reason for keeping lots at one acre.

"We're not anti-development or anti-business," Sherry Leicht said, "but there are concerns that some businesses may not be appropriate for that area. Right now [without zoning] it's anything goes."

There was opposition from some neighbors, however, who see R-1 zoning as a deterrent for one day splitting their property, either to provide lots for their children or to afford keeping their lakefront property.

"I'm concerned about my kids and grandkids. Maybe they'd eventually want to put a house" on my property, Bob Lilienthal said, noting that he believes R-2 or R-3 zoning may be more appropriate for the area. "But I feel like I'm getting in front of a fast-moving freight train here" with all the support for R-1.

Greg Stevens, who was chairman of the growth-policy committee and served on the Kalispell City-County Planning Board, said he believes one-acre zoning for that area is "the most inappropriate zoning proposal I've seen."

"One-acre minimum lots on lakeshore is probably unheard of," Stevens said. "Sixty of the parcels already are nonconforming. That should raise a red flag."

Stevens owns a 100-foot lot in the new district.

Mike Seaman, who is in the manufactured-housing business, argued that without zoning, development projects still are scrutinized through the planning process. He owns a sizable chunk of undeveloped property in the new district.

"Why limit the zoning?" Seaman asked. "This sets a precedent that you've got to follow down the line. With sewer in that area, do we want more density?"

Sewer is available in the new zoning district from the Lakeside Sewer District.

Commissioner Joe Brenneman cited two reasons for voting in favor of the new district: A majority of landowners support it and there is the threat of more runoff into Flathead Lake with zoning denser than one acre.

He pointed out that R-1 zoning allows for guest homes, and in some cases property-line adjustments may accommodate property owners' desires to divide their land.

Property owners also would be able to apply for variances to have setbacks altered, Hagemeier said, particularly on narrow lots.

"We can't divide land along the lakes forever," Brenneman said. "At this level, do we say this is what makes sense?"

Commissioner Dale Lauman, who lives in the north end of the new district, said he believes one-acre zoning fits the area.

"People have talked about this for a lot of years," he said.

Features editor Lynnette Hintze may be reached at 758-4421 or by e-mail at lhintze@dailyinterlake.com