Church zoning change gains final approval

A long-debated zone change for an Evergreen church gained final approval from the Flathead County commissioners last week.

Following the conclusion of a 30-day protest period, commissioners approved the final resolution to change the zoning of part of the lot where Faith Baptist Church sits at 108 W. Reserve Drive so that the entire church property is now zoned B-2 general business.

The church property previously had two zone classifications — general business and residential — on different sections.

One formal protest was filed against the zone change by Richard Sauerbier, who lives next door to the church.

He spoke to commissioners Sept. 20, registering his protest.

Sauerbier said the church is located in a largely residential area and zoning shouldn’t be altered to commercial to accommodate one property. He said the majority of neighboring property owners opposed the zone change and had been since it came up for discussion.

Other neighbors had spoken against the zone change at past meetings, but no one else filed a formal protest to the change.