Lakeside park plans progressing

Park would offer 190 feet of lake frontage

Plans for a new waterfront public park in Lakeside are ready for public perusal.

Conceptual drawings for the Lakeside Shoreline Park on Flathead Lake were unveiled at the Lakeside summer fair in July. The plans and drawings by landscape architect Bruce Boody are available for public viewing and comment at the West Shore Community Library in Lakeside through September.

With public access in mind, Bruce Ennis and his wife, Margaret Davis, last year purchased an acre of land near the Bayshore Motel from the Mattson family and then presented a park proposal to the Lakeside community. Recently, Ennis also bought the Bayshore Motel, a crucial property that provides a link between a county-owned swim dock and boat ramp at the end of Adams Street and the proposed park.

The purchase of the motel allowed Ennis to adjust the plans to incorporate an expanded lakeshore and additional parking, Davis said.

"Including Flathead County's existing Adams Street boat ramp and public dock, there will be approximately 190 feet of uninterrupted lake frontage," she said.

Portions of the Bayshore Motel building could be used as a community room, with attached restrooms, she added.

The park would be a day-use only facility, with paved parking for passenger vehicles only. Oversized RVs and trailer-towing vehicles wouldn't be accommodated because of space limitations, Davis said.

Ennis grew up in Kalispell and spent a lot of time on Flathead Lake. Public lake access is important to both Ennis and Davis.

The couple hope to solidify a transfer agreement allowing Flathead County to maintain the park. Last year, county commissioner Dale Lauman said he wanted to see how much public support the plan has before weighing in on the proposal.

Flathead County Parks and Recreation Director Jed Fisher said the county is determining what the long-term maintenance costs would be for the park.

"We're more than interested," Fisher said, "and I think that overwhelmingly we'll learn that 98 percent of the county's residents are in support."

Fisher said the county would hold a couple of public hearings if the commissioners decide to move ahead with a memorandum of understanding to assume maintenance of the new park.

The county already maintains three park areas in Lakeside: Ben Williams Park off Blacktail Road, a dock and boat ramp at the end of Bierney Creek Road and a swim dock and boat ramp at the end of Adams Street.

The Lakeside Area Parks Advisory Committee supports the proposed park, but it has met with opposition from neighbors who don't want the intrusion of a public lakefront park in their neighborhood.

"The main thing is we want people to come in and look at the plans," Davis said. "We've made every effort to be in contact with the neighbors."

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