Whitefish Lake advocate explains new rules to county

The chairman of the Whitefish Lake and Lakeshore Protection Committee updated the Flathead County commissioners on updated regulations for the lake, responding to a recent advertising campaign opposing the revision.

Jim Stack told the commission that the lakeshore regulations have "not been tightened" and instead have "been eased in a number of areas' compared to the regulations that governed the lake since 1987. A major goal in the revision, he said, was to reorganize the regulations into a "more user-friendly, easier-to-understand format."

Nevertheless, the revision has been controversial. An ad campaign, led by the Northwest Montana Association of Realtors, opposed the revised regulations prior to the Whitefish City Council's initial approval on a 5-1 vote July 6. A final vote is expected at the July 20 council meeting.

One radio ad suggested the revised regulations would make it illegal to skip a rock on the lake.

"Such ads have been not only misleading, they've been blatantly false," Stack said, explaining to the commissioners that the ad entirely misrepresented one provision in the regulations, but it was still removed before the council's first reading vote.

Stack cited other areas where the regulations have been eased with the intent of benefiting property owners:

It expedites the approval time for dock permits, which account for more than 80 percent of the permits that are processed.

It removes the requirement for a permit to replace an existing buoy or shore station.

It increases dock slip lengths and gangway provisions for private marinas.

It removes configuration restrictions on shared docks.

It specifically allows sprinkler drip lines in the lakeshore protection zone to encourage revegetation.

And a provision applying to the replacement of "non-conforming structures' increases the damage threshold from 50 percent to 90 percent, allowing repairs to the structure without a variance.

The commissioners and the county have no jurisdiction or direct involvement in the Whitefish lakeshore regulation revision process because the city of Whitefish currently has planning jurisdiction over the entire lake. However, the commissioners have been tracking the process because of the possibility that the county could regain jurisdiction over the north half of the lake if it prevails in the so-called "doughnut" lawsuit.

And George Smith, a county planner, was assigned as an observer to the revision process over the last few months. If the county does regain jurisdiction, it will be in a position to draft its own regulations for Whitefish Lake in a way that will closely follow, or at least not be at odds with the city's regulations.

"We don't want two sets of regulations," said Jeff Harris, director of the county planning department, in a recent interview.

The doughnut lawsuit was filed by the city of Whitefish after the county rescinded an interlocal planning agreement last year. The county sought to regain control of the two-mile planning area outside city limits.

But in May, Flathead District Judge Katherine Curtis issued an injunction restoring the city's jurisdictional authority until the case is heard and decided in court.

Reporter Jim Mann may be reached at 758-4407 or by e-mail at jmann@dailyinterlake.com