Wal-Mart issue won't be resolved May 9

It all comes down to next week, right?

Not exactly.

You would think with all the hoopla surrounding next week's Wal-Mart meeting in front of the city/county planning board that the question about whether the supercenter will exist will be decided then.

Not so fast, folks.

There are several important issues facing the planning board, including Wal-Mart's request for a special-use permit, and making recommendations for a request for a zoning change and subdivision approval.

The decision on the special-use permit will be made by the city/county planning board, but board chairman Bob Fulton has noted that their recommendation is contingent on several items — the zoning change, the subdivision application and the annexation request.

The planning board has control over two of those issues but not the most important one — the annexation request.

The annexation request will be at the Polson city council's discretion, and will not be part of next Tuesday's meeting.

So far, the annexation request has not been added to the Polson city council's agenda, meaning it might be weeks or more before that question is addressed.

Denying that request essentially means all the other issues are moot.

We want to remind folks of this as we all prepare for next week's meeting, scheduled for 6 p.m. at Polson High School on May 9. While this meeting is an important part of the application process, and the city/county planning board will have some tough issues to weigh in on, it's important for people to remember that whether or not the supercenter comes into existence won't be fully determined next Tuesday, regardless of what the planning board decides.

It's also important to note the board must consider aspects of the Polson Development Code when making their decision. The code was developed in 1993, and city officials are the first to concede that it needs to be updated, but right now it's the guiding arm for a lot of these decisions.

Having said that, city/county planning board members are doing everything they can to make sure they hear all of the public comments. We urge everyone to be respectful of the process, of others' opinions, and of the board members, too. They have some tough choices to make, and deserve your respect and cooperation as they go through that process.