North Shore Ranch land deal dead

The Flathead Land Trust was unable to reach an agreement with developers Keith Simon and Sean Averill to purchase the North Shore Ranch property near Somers.

Negotiators worked past a 30-day extension included in a lawsuit settlement but could not meet the price the developers wanted, Flathead Land Trust president Jim Regnier said Friday.

“We worked hard to reach some common ground throughout the negotiation,” Regnier said in a press release. “We made an offer that we felt was fair to both the developers and to the public. Unfortunately, our price fell short of the developers’ expectation.”

Negotiations had been ongoing since March 8, when the Flathead County commissioners accepted a settlement agreement to end a lawsuit filed by the developers.

The lawsuit challenged the commission’s earlier decision to deny the proposed North Shore Ranch subdivision.

Located next to a wildlife refuge along the north end of Flathead Lake, the 364-acre tract is especially important to the groups such as the land trust because of its environmentally sensitive nature.

Funding for the proposed purchase would have come from a variety of sources and would have included federal, county and private funds, Regnier said. Had the land trust been able to buy the property, ownership would have been transferred to the state of Montana as public property.

“That way, the people would have gotten a very tangible return for their money,” he said.

Regnier said the trust still hopes a future agreement can be reached so the property can be preserved in perpetuity.

“Unfortunately, most of the federal money we have right now has strict time limits for its use and we’re right up against those deadlines,” Regnier said. “Those dollars will now likely go on to projects elsewhere.

“I’d like to thank everyone involved in these negotiations for all their hard work,” he said. “Our funding partners, in particular, were able to secure the necessary financial commitments in a matter of days, commitments that often take months to put together. It took an extraordinary effort to put this firm offer on the table and we regret that, in the end, it wasn’t enough.”

Meanwhile, the county is required to pay the developers $1 million. The first $500,000 will be paid this year, with the remaining $500,000 split into two payments in 2011 and 2012.

The agreement sets aside $600,000 of the $1 million settlement for purchase of an easement giving public access to about 150 acres.

In the event the developers sell the property, they would have to reimburse the county the $600,000. The remaining $400,000 is a cash payment for the developers.

If the subdivision is built, the county will be required to construct at its cost the internal road network and highway turning lanes for a revamped version of North Shore Ranch.