The conclusion in our fight for “doughnut” representation came April 7 at 11:38 a.m. when the Flathead County Commissioners approved final zoning for the Whitefish planning doughnut — Resolution 2416A and Resolution 2417A.

It’s time to celebrate and give thanks!

The trouble began in early 2005 with an interlocal agreement that gave Whitefish control over the doughnut. The Whitefish City Council promptly began work on its controversial Critical Areas Ordinance and other regulations aimed at doughnut residents.

We then began efforts to return doughnut jurisdiction to the county. Whitefish sued the county, which began six years of litigation, with two trips to the Montana Supreme Court. In 2014, we beat Whitefish in litigation and the county commissioners, at last, could begin adopting county regulations for our property.

The county zoning process concluded Thursday, taking almost 21 months. [A cautionary note: We know how Whitefish badly wants to control us, even though we cannot vote in its city elections. We must remain vigilant to power grabs by Whitefish and its allies.]

We are grateful to those who made this possible, starting with county Commissioner Jim Dupont. He was a rock star supporter of our efforts; if he had lived to see today, he would be hoisting his glass in celebration. After Commissioner Dupont’s passing, his unwavering support was picked up by fellow commissioners Dale Lauman, Pam Holmquist, Gary Krueger and Phil Mitchell.

We also must thank all the staff at the county planning department, especially former director B.J. Grieve, who provided wise counsel during the litigation and the subsequent takeover. And kudos to the county planning board (all volunteers), who devoted dozens and dozens of hours to crafting a fine doughnut land use plan.

And, of course, thank you to all those who supported this effort. It was long, tough and costly and I appreciate your participation.

Thank you!

— Rick Blake, Whitefish