Despite a lack of interest in two open committee positions, the Bigfork Land Use Advisory Committee was able to add one new member at its June 30 meeting.

The committee sent out notices regarding the openings on two separate occasions, but received no letters of interest from potential candidates.

Bigfork resident Susan Johnson attended the meeting as a member of the public, and after expressing interest in taking on one of the open positions, committee members voted to appoint her to a one-year term.

Current BLUAC member Paul Guerrant was happy to welcome Johnson aboard, saying it will be beneficial to the committee to get fresh ideas and perspectives from a new member.

“Diversity is what spurs us on,” Guerrant said. “We take pride in not always agreeing. We can agree to disagree.”

With Johnson’s appointment, the committee still has one open slot for a member-at-large.

According to BLUAC secretary Sue Hanson, the committee can still operate if it is one member short, as long as there is a quorum for all decisions.

Although the bylaws state that the committee must fill any vacancies within 30 days, Hanson said BLUAC would not be held responsible for violating that rule in this case since no applications were submitted.

Guerrant said the lack of interest is a result of “growing apathy over the years.”

He noted that last year, the committee canceled three or four of its 12 meetings due to lack of building applications.

“There’s not a lot of development with the economy the way it is,” Guerrant said. “The result of that (situation) in the past is that this committee dwindled down to the point that the county commissioners started appointing people, and those appointments didn’t work very well in my view.”

The committee voted to continue operating with the vacancy.

If filled, the appointed member-at-large would serve the remainder of the position’s one-year term, which ends next June.

OFFICER APPOINTMENTS

Also at the June 30 meeting, BLUAC members elected officers to serve through this year’s term.

Shelley Gonzales will serve as this year’s committee chairperson.

Guerrant was elected as vice-chairperson, and Sue Hanson was elected to a second term as secretary.

SADDLEHORN UPDATE

County commissioners approved the Saddlehorn lot change that was discussed at previous BLUAC meetings.

The change involves swapping out two lots in the the site and does not affect the overall density of the development.