Lake County Density Map-The Straight Story from the County

By Paddy Trusler

A group of Lake County residents has been circulating a petition to place a referendum on the election ballot in November to ask the registered voters in Lake County whether or not to rescind the Lake County Density Map and Regulations that became effective in October 2005. This article is an attempt to inform the general public on the Density Map and Regulations and to describe their purpose.

The Density Map and Regulations deal exclusively with the density of future property development. This means the number of lots that could be created through the subdivision process and the number of units that can be developed on an individual parcel of land. The Density Map and Regulations allow all areas of Lake County to be developed, but encourage more intensive future development near existing population centers and sparser growth in the outlying areas. The regulations are not intended to discourage growth, but to manage growth in a manner that can control the need for taxpayer subsidies for public services (road maintenance, school bus transportation, police and fire protection, etc.), maintain the rural character of Lake County, and protect the quality of our natural resources, agricultural lands and wildlife habitat areas from the impacts of dense development.

The primary purpose the Lake County Density Map and Regulations is to achieve the purpose of the Montana Subdivision and Platting Act. The origin of the idea that led to the creation of the Density Map and Regulations was based on a policy that Lake County used to evaluate subdivision proposals since a legislative change in 1994. The Density Map and Regulations put this policy on paper so that developers and property owners know what the rules are at the outset of the land development process. By making the rules clear up front, Lake County hopes to avoid lawsuits that cost the taxpayers money. The Density Map and Regulations were adopted under the Montana zoning statutes so they would be legally binding. Non-binding guidelines are useless when there is such high potential for litigation.

Throughout the public process that created the Density Map and Regulations, the Planning Staff, Citizen Planning Board Members, and County Commissioners considered economic issues, property right concerns, natural resource values and political realities. With over 12 months of public input at 21 public meetings, the draft map and regulations were amended at least 12 times. To address the major concerns of the public that participated in the process, the County Commissioners included language to 1) exempt family transfer subdivision proposals from the density requirements, and 2) to ensure the document is not expanded in the future to include other zoning features, such as zones for specific land uses. The adopted Regulations include provisions for exceptions and regular updates as well as for the consideration of variance requests and amendment proposals. Lake County believes the Regulations find a balance between the rights of individuals, sound public fiscal policy and good long-range community planning.

The Lake County Density Map and Regulations are available to the public at the Lake County Courthouse or online at www.lakecounty-mt.org. Members of the public that have questions regarding any aspect of the Regulations are encouraged to call or visit with the Planning Department or the Lake County Commissioners.