Ramp reduction ordered

A long-running dispute over public access to Church Slough off the lower Flathead River has taken an odd turn with a court order to reduce the width of a new county boat ramp for the purpose of limiting the size of boats that can use it.

Developer Dennis Carver sued the county last year, seeking to close the public access on land that he donated to the county as a condition for approving his River Vista Estates subdivision along the slough. Carver contends the land was donated for the purpose of a primitive access for the public to carry small watercraft to the water. But the county and a local rod-and-gun club, Flathead Wildlife Inc., say the land was turned over to the county with no deed restrictions for the purpose of creating a standard boat launch.

Flathead County District Judge Katherine Curtis heard arguments from the two sides on Aug. 25 in proceedings that were limited to a request for a preliminary injunction to close the access until the full case is heard at a later date.

Curtis ended up determining that the boat launch will remain open, but directed the county to limit the width of the ramp so that it can be accessed by boats no longer than 16 feet, apparently because of a state law that requires counties to provide “substantially the same” public access that existed prior to a right-of-way abandonment.

Flathead Wildlife President Chuck Hunt said the judge appeared to have focused on his testimony that he was able to access the slough with a 16-foot boat using a previous primitive access from Wagner Lane, a road that paralleled the slough before the county abandoned it in 2007 at the request of Carver. That abandonment, which was stiffly resisted by Flathead Wildlife, enhanced the value of Carver’s property by creating waterfront lots.

Flathead Wildlife threatened to sue the county because the abandonment amounted to a loss of historic public access to the slough. That led to negotiations and Carver’s agreement to donate the access parcel to the county with no deed restrictions. While Carver maintains in court documents that he intended for the donated property to be used as a primitive access, Flathead Wildlife was unwilling to accept a limited boat access and neither were the county commissioners prior to the abandonment of Wagner Lane.

Soon after the boat ramp, eight parking spaces, picnic tables and a turnaround area were installed in the spring of 2010, Carver sued the county, claiming the access was a nuisance that devalued his lots. Carver lives two lots away from the access.

“Plaintiffs have incurred and will in the future continue to incur a substantial loss of revenue and other financial harm arising out of Flathead County’s illegal, wrongful and unconstitutional actions and omissions, including the loss of proceeds from the sale of residential property,” the lawsuit filed in May 2010 states.

Carver maintains the access exceeds the previous access to the slough, but Flathead Wildlife and the county argue that a primitive access to the 100 feet of waterfront would not be “substantially the same” as the 1,200-foot stretch of Wagner Lane that was abandoned.

“The problem is the public gave up a lot and we are not getting substantially the same, so this is far from over,” said Hunt, noting that Wagner Lane served as a public corridor for viewing the slough. “We were supposed to get substantially the same, and we’re not getting it.”

In court papers filed last week, Carver said the county’s proposal to narrow the width of the boat ramp from 12 feet wide to 9 feet wide using barriers does not go far enough.

“A ramp this wide enables precisely the types of boats the injunction prohibits to access the slough,” the document states, adding that Carver is requesting that 8-inch steel posts be installed at the end of the ramp to restrict boat sizes. Carver’s attorney has been pressing for a ramp width of 6 feet, 6 inches, according to court documents.

The county has put a sign instructing that the ramp shall not be used by boats longer than 16 feet, but it has been ignored by the public and the county has not adequately enforced the restriction, Carver states in an affidavit.

Hunt contends that small boats and jet skis can use the launch and be more disruptive than larger vessels, and there are no restrictions for those enter the slough from the river or for people who live on the slough, including Carver.

Because the two sides cannot agree on a width for the ramp, that matter will be decided by Judge Curtis, said Flathead County Deputy Attorney Peter Steele. That injunction will hold until the full case is heard and decided in court.

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