County OKs new zoning in Lakeside

Acknowledging a solid show of support from property owners, the Flathead County commissioners on Monday unanimously passed a resolution of intent to create a new lakefront zoning district in Lakeside.

A final vote still is needed to make the Lakeside Boulevard North Zone a reality.

The new zoning for one-family residences encompasses 87.4 acres between Flathead Lake and U.S. 93 north of downtown Lakeside. It will be bordered by Caroline Point Road to the north and the Lakeside Zoning District to the south.

The currently unzoned property is developed primarily with one-family residences, but there are a few duplexes, apartments, one condominium and a small hotel that will become legally nonconforming or grandfathered uses when the zone is created.

Both the Lakeside Community Council and Flathead County Planning Board recommended approval of the new zone.

Most of the public testimony at Monday’s hearing supported the zoning effort, although Lakeside resident Tim Twamley said he opposed it because he doesn’t feel the boulevard zoning is a good fit for Lakeside. He also said he believes many of the people who signed a petition in favor of the zoning were misinformed and signed it “under false pretenses.

“I don’t think property owners have read the restrictions,” Twamley said. “What they get is what they get, short of subdivision review.”

Gregg Schoh, one of six property owners who asked for the new zoning, said the application has been ongoing for several years. Everyone he contacted was given copies of the zoning regulations, he added.

Sixty-seven percent of the affected property owners, constituting 74 percent of the total land area, favor the new zoning.

New uses with the boulevard zone will be limited to permitted and conditional uses allowed in a one-family limited residential zone. Any new lot created would have to be 20,000 square feet. At that size, a total of 44 additional lots could be created in the proposed district.

Because the area currently is unzoned, there are no restrictions on density, according to the planning report. The area is served by the Lakeside County Sewer and Water District, but doesn’t have the transportation infrastructure to accommodate urban densities.

There are no sidewalks, street lights, storm drains, gutters or other amenities. Access to U.S. 93 also is a concern in that area.

The northern intersection of U.S. 93 and Lakeside Boulevard is steep, followed by an immediate “S” curve, while the southern intersection of U.S. 93 and Lakeside Boulevard has a sharp angle of intersection with the highway.

Commissioner Dale Lauman, whose district includes the Lakeside area, said this kind of zoning should have been put in place 20 years ago.

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