Flathead County Commission: Supporting small business, environment important to Larson

As a small business owner, Flathead County Commission candidate Kristen Larson understands the difficulties facing her business and other businesses in the Flathead Valley. As county commissioner, she says one of her top priorities would be to help small businesses as much as possible in these tough times.

Larson, a Democrat, faces Republican Brad Abell for the District 1 commission seat held by Phil Mitchell, who is not running for reelection. That district covers the northern portion of Flathead County.

“I think small businesses are the most important things in our county,” Larson said. “Supporting our small business community is very important to me. I’m a small business owner myself and I can tell you that the struggle is real for all of us right now.”

Along with her husband Derek, Larson has owned and operated Glacier Lanes bowling alley in Columbia Falls since 2018. Having grown up in the Flathead Valley, she graduated from Flathead High School in 2000 before earning an associate degree at a community college in Boston. After returning home to the Flathead Valley, Larson founded the Happiness is a Warm Sleeping Bag group, which provides sleeping bags for the homeless, in 2017, and helped fellow Creston-area landowners oppose a proposed water bottling plant in 2019.

“The proposal seemed unimaginable to me. I was concerned about the vast amount of water that would be sucked out of our aquifer and its impact on the neighbor's well,” she said. “I was also concerned about what appeared to be spot zoning in a traditional agricultural area and was concerned about the impact of additional traffic on county roads.”

It is these kinds of zoning issues that Larson plans to keep a closer eye on if elected.

“The commission failed to fully grasp the efforts by hundreds of volunteers seeking a stop to such inappropriate use of land. They failed to recognize the overwhelming will of the people. Situations like this must be avoided through citizen-involved planning,”she said. “Good zoning policy provides certainty and protects property rights for landowners and neighbors while helping to maintain safe roads, provide emergency services and maintain a healthy environment.”

With the booming growth being experienced throughout the Flathead Valley in recent years, Larson said now is the time for people to be thinking about and deciding what they want the valley to look like in the future.

“Property rights are an important tenet of our society, but growth is happening here and it is happening quickly. We need to work together to protect this valley’s open lands for future generations,” Larson said. “We are all stakeholders in the county and I think it is time we had a conversation about the collective vision of what we want this valley to be in the future. As a commissioner, I want to make sure everyone has input and that no one is above the law when it comes to making decisions that will affect everyone.”

While Larson believes it is important to protect the area’s open lands and water quality, she said it is equally important to maintain a separation between residential and industrial areas throughout the county and was in support of the Board of Adjustment’s recent decision to deny a permit for an asphalt plant in West Valley.

“If we foster neighborhood developments with single-family homes, for example, in the West Valley, we must provide protections for such land use. Long-term land use, such as an asphalt plant and a necessary supply of sand and gravel are needed components for a growing county, but putting them next to a residential neighborhood is not the answer,” she said.

Another issue of growth that concerns Larson is its effects on the environment. She specifically wants the county Environmental Health Department to have the resources it needs to make sure septic systems are not contaminating area groundwater.

“Clean water is important to us in the Flathead for our recreational play, tourism and our real estate and agricultural communities. Clean water is our heritage, it is imperative we invest in protecting and preserving our surface and groundwater,” she said. “Science has shown one of the biggest polluters is from septic systems and our county’s resources must be equipped to handle our growth.”

Another issue on Larson’s radar is the construction of a new jail, which remains a part of the county’s long-range capital spending plan. Larson said she is in favor of a new jail, as well as a drug rehabilitation and treatment center.

“Do I favor coupling the new jail with a drug treatment facility? Yes, I do,” she said. “Anyone who has ever had a friend or family member that suffers from addiction knows how hard it is to get them the resources they need for recovery; we need to change that. Programs and resources are proven to create safer communities and save taxpayers dollars.”

With the many issues facing Flathead County today, Larson wants to make sure future generations get the opportunity to enjoy all the valley has to offer.

“How can we work together for the next generation of Montanans to keep the valley’s open land heritage?” she asked. “We are all stakeholders in this county and I think it’s time we have a real conversation about the collective vision of our county's growth. Where do we want to grow and how?”

Flathead County Commission District 1

Kristen Larson

Age: 39

Family: Derek Larson, husband, and daughter Sunniva, 5

Occupation: Owner of Glacier Lanes bowling alley in Columbia Falls

Background: 2000 graduate of Flathead High School; Associate of Arts degree at community college in Boston; founder of Happiness is a Warm Sleeping Bag (2017)

Contact: www.larson4leadership.com

Reporter Jeremy Weber may be reached at 758-4446 or jweber@dailyinterlake.com.