Work on a bridge leading to an island off the north shore of Flathead Lake has been halted because the project does not comply with terms of a county permit.

The bridge that was being built was going to be 620 feet long, but the lakeshore construction permit allowed only a 481-foot bridge from the north shore to Dockstader Island.

Flathead County Planning Director B.J. Grieve said Roger Sortino, whose family owns the island and lots off Holt Drive, contacted the Planning Office on April 21 about additional development on the island.

“As part of that conversation, he mentioned that had to add a zigzag to the access bridge” design to avoid problems with getting bridge pilings through bedrock, Grieve said.

The next day, a “stop work” order was posted, preventing the project from proceeding. Sortino was notified that he either needs to bring the project in compliance with his permit or he can apply for a permit amendment that would have to go before the Flathead County commissioners.

Sortino applied for a permit amendment on April 28.

The application states that a 620-foot bridge is necessary to reach the island from the shore, and it would involve 28-foot spans rather than 13-foot spans outlined in the existing permit. That change would reduce the number of pilings for the bridge from 76 to 48.

The bridge has drawn scorn from some Bigfork area residents who regard it as an ostentatious eyesore.

Grieve noted that the only way such a large structure could comply with the county’s “impervious coverage” formula in the lakeshore regulations is that Sortino has an “extraordinarily unique property.”

The amount of square footage of structures over water that is allowed is determined by how much lake frontage is involved with the property.

Because the Sortino family has frontage associated with the north shore as well as the island, the formula allows for 14,864 square feet of impervious surface over the water. The longer bridge plus a dock structure on the island amount to 9,920 square feet of surface.

There is another unique aspect to the project: The bridge leads from one part of the Sortino property to another part, crossing over land owned by the Sortino family. Decades ago, the island was a spit, but erosion allowed the water to surround the island when the lake is at full pool.

Grieve said Sortino’s request for a permit amendment will have to wait in line behind other permit applications that are being processed during the busiest time of year for the Planning Office.

The application will go before the commissioners at some point and there will not be a public hearing, he said.

“I have to give him due process regardless of my feelings or anyone else’s feelings about that,” Grieve said. “There is no public hearing for a standard lakeshore permit.”  

Contrary to any perception that the county is allowing willy-nilly development on the lake, Grieve noted that the county has been far more diligent in enforcing compliance of lakeshore regulations for more than a year.

In October 2012, a part-time inspector was hired by the county to ensure that projects comply with permitted conditions.

“Those inspections very often reveal projects that have been out of compliance with the permit,” he said, citing the example of a property owner building an F-shaped dock when only an L-shaped dock was permitted.

“These types of situations where people are getting a permit and building in excess or outside the terms of their permit, we wouldn’t have had any idea without these follow-up inspections,” Grieve said. “We do pursue compliance, and if they don’t comply, then we pursue enforcement through the county attorney’s office.”

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