The public will have another opportunity to comment on revised land use and development restrictions near Glacier Park International Airport.  

County planning staff amended the restrictions outlined in the proposed ordinance in response to public comments from the Flathead County Planning Board’s June 10 meeting. Planning board members agreed Wednesday that residents deserve a chance to comment on the updated version. 

A second public hearing on the proposed ordinance will be held at the board’s September meeting. 

"I want to make sure if we do regulations, that property rights are still protected,” said Board Chair Jeff Larsen.  

The county Planning and Zoning Department has worked with the Flathead Municipal Airport Authority over the past two years to establish an Airport Affect Area, a three-layered zone with varying densities and development restrictions, known as Ordinance No. 10. The draft ordinance has undergone multiple edits in response to feedback from two meetings with affected landowners in May and a public hearing in June.  

The latest version eliminated the airport’s shorter runway from the Runway Protection Area — the central and most restrictive zone in the Airport Affected Area — reducing its size from 3,125 acres to 2,305 acres.  

Planning staff also eased density restrictions in the proposed ordinance. 

The minimum lot size in the Runway Protection Area changed from 5 acres to 2.5 acres for residential and agricultural use. Land use density also changed, from one lot per 20 acres to one lot per 2.5 acres. The minimum lot size for commercial and industrial use stayed the same at 10,000 square feet. 

In the Airport Protection Area, the second layered zone, land use density increased from one lot per 5 acres to one lot per 1 acre for residential and agricultural use. The minimum 1-acre lot size remains the same, as well as the minimum 10,000-square-foot lot size for commercial and industrial use.  

Several landowners argued last month that the ordinance prevented them from splitting their land and passing it on to their children. Splitting parcels or subdividing land for family transfers is now exempted in the ordinance. Accessory dwelling units are also now allowed. 

Development of dwelling units, duplexes, multi-family units and gravel pits in the Runway Protection Area would require a conditional use permit under the updated ordinance. This is in addition to cellular towers, hospitals, daycare centers, parks and recreational facilities, and schools.  

Existing structures that conform to land use regulations under the ordinance, but not the height restriction, may be modified without county review, as long as the height doesn’t increase, according to most recent draft of the ordinance. A property owner, for example, can repair an existing barn that is taller than the 35-foot height cap without permission from the county as long as those repairs don’t add to the barn’s height.  

THE PLANNING Board unanimously supported three other applications during its meeting on Wednesday. Little to no public comment was offered on hearings for all three applications. 

The first was a text amendment submitted by Jim Roth, owner of First Class Grass Farm in Kalispell, to allow marijuana-associated operations in certain business and industrial zones.  

Marijuana cultivation is limited to AG (agricultural), SAG (suburban agricultural), I-1 and I-2 (industrial), R-2.5 (rural residential) and R-1 (suburban residential) zones. Certain business zones only allow the dispensing, or sale, of marijuana.  

Roth’s application is a continuation of an amendment he proposed last fall to permit indoor marijuana growth and cultivation in B-1 business zones. His initial application was amended during a Planning Board workshop in April after county commissioners tabled it on Dec. 9. Commissioners reviewed the revised application on June 16 and voted to send it back to the Planning Board. 

The new text amendment would allow integrated marijuana facilities as a conditional use in B-1, B-3, B-5, B-6, BM-2 and business service district zones, and a permitted use in B-2 and B-4 zones. In a licensed integrated marijuana facility, workers cultivate, manufacture and dispense the product on the same premises. 

It also permits marijuana operations — any licensed facility or operation that engages in the handling of marijuana or marijuana products — in I-1 (light industrial) and I-1H (light industrial highway) zones.  

Roth’s proposal would create a new section in Flathead County Zoning Regulations that establishes operational, odor, ventilation, lightning and environmental control standards for all marijuana facilities, with corresponding definitions. 

Angela Palmer, who works in the cannabis industry, was the only person to comment on the text amendment. She gave it her full support.  

“It’s a good thing for the industry, and our communities as a whole, because it gives us a better structure for cannabis,” she said.  

TWO ZONE change requests earned the board’s support with no public comment.  

Property owners Donald and Virginia Wood applied to rezone their 9.95-acre land in Evergreen from SAG-10 (suburban agricultural) to R-1 (suburban residential). The property is located at 139 W. Reserve Drive and contains one single-family dwelling unit, an attached garage and several accessory structures, according to a staff report.   

The Woods said the zone amendment would allow them to create an additional 5-acre lot through a boundary line adjustment, or keep the property available for future development.   

Todd and Roxanne Baker applied to rezone their 0.57-acre property at 639 Conrad Drive near Kalispell from R-5 (two-family residential) to B-1 (neighborhood and professional business).  

Big Sky Monuments, a headstone and monument business, has operated on the property for more than 75 years, according to a staff report. The Bakers want to sell their property to the Conrad Cemetery Board. However, the board wants to move its office to the property, which is not permitted in R-5 zoning, hence the zone request.  

Report for America Reporter Hannah Shields can be reached at 406-758-4439 or [email protected]. If you value local journalism, pledge your support at dailyinterlake.com/support.