Attorney clears county over list of 'doughnut' addresses

No one in Flathead County government did anything illegal regarding a land ownership list used by the Flathead Business and Industry Association, the county attorney's office concluded.

A few weeks ago, Russ Crowder, president of the property rights organization American Dream Montana, presented a letter to the county commissioners that accused the county planning office, planning Director Jeff Harris and one unidentified commissioner of breaking the law on how the business group received the ownership list.

In a Monday letter to Crowder, County Attorney Ed Corrigan outlined the circumstances:

A woman put together a list of owners in Whitefish's so-called "doughnut" area -

a two-mile-wide area circling the city in which the town and county governments each contend it has priority in land-use planning.

She bought a non-certified list from the county's GIS department for a standard fee of $10 in January 2008 so she could contact some neighbors on the "doughnut" issue.

The woman - whom Corrigan's letter did not name - was a member of the Flathead Business and Industry Association.

Later when the association needed a "doughnut" landowners list, she forwarded her list to the organization. Association Executive Director Denise Smith declined to identify the woman.

The commissioners, Harris and the planning office had nothing to with the association obtaining the owners list, Corrigan wrote.

"We find no merit whatsoever in the allegations," his letter said.

Crowder responded on Tuesday: "This is kind of what I'd expect out of the county attorney's office."

Crowder still contended that an illegal act by the county government led to the association obtaining the ownership list.

"If the county is not going to pursue it, we certainly will. … We've got some options outside of the county that we'll explore," Crowder said, but he declined to elaborate.

Harris said Tuesday: ""I was absolutely certain that the allegations were false."

He noted that Crowder has routinely attacked the planning office for years, based on his philosophical opposition to government regulating land uses.