The Flathead County Planning Office recently approved an application for a large work camp that will house Pursuit Glacier Park Collection’s seasonal employees.

The camp, on R.E.A. Road includes 11 cabins, each containing two beds; three dormitory buildings providing a total 32 beds; and 19 recreational vehicle spaces.

All told, it would initially serve about 137 of the company’s summer employees. Pursuit owns most of the shops and stores in West Glacier and Apgar.

The camp was approved by county Planning Director Erik Mack on Feb. 23.

The complex will be between the neighborhood of West Glacier and Pursuit’s existing RV Park.

Over 100 public comments were received, including several petitions, the staff report noted.

The majority of comments expressed opposition to the proposed project, citing a host of concerns, from wildlife to traffic to the character of the neighborhood.

However, the county planning office noted that the Canyon Area Land Use Regulatory System, which governs the land use in the area, specifically allows for work camps as a land use and does not cap their size.

Public comments asserted that the proposed work camp should be reviewed as a Major Land Use rather than a Minor Land Use due to its scale and potential impacts. Under the Canyon Area Land Use Regulatory System, uses are classified by category, not by size or number of occupants. 

“CALURS specifically identifies a work camp as a Minor Land Use within the Middle Canyon, subject to administrative review and compliance with performance standards. The zoning administrator does not have discretion to reclassify a use that is expressly listed as a Minor Land Use under the governing regulations,” the staff report noted.

It also noted that the camp, as designed, complies with performance standards.

“The work camp is clustered internally on a 24.644-acre parcel, maintains required setbacks, preserves existing vegetation for screening, and does not extend above ridgelines visible from U.S. Highway 2. Compliance with these standards ensures compatibility as defined by CALURS,” the staff report noted.

The work camp section of law was added a few years ago to CALURS to address the shortage of workforce housing in the summer months.

As far as traffic is concerned, the report noted that most employees use company-owned shuttles and the bulk don’t even have vehicles. Garbage will be stored in bear-proof containers. The sewer system will tie into the existing sewer system for the adjacent RV park.

Building heights are capped at 35 feet and the camp is for employee housing only.

The proposed Phase 1 development includes housing for 137 employees and provides 137 off-street parking spaces, thereby meeting the requirements of this standard. 

“A future Phase 2 expansion is anticipated; however, any additional employee housing associated with Phase 2 will be subject to a separate application and review process and will be required to demonstrate compliance with CALURS at that time,” the staff report noted.

Outdoor lighting will be designed to be dark-sky compliant, with quiet hours between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m.

All told, the facility has 16 conditions.

The public can appeal the decision to the Flathead County Board of Adjustment. But the appeal is narrow in scope. It must show the county planning office “made an error in the interpretation of these regulations, and the erroneous interpretation specifically aggrieves the appellant.”

Appeals must be filed via a Zoning Administrator Interpretation Appeal Application, and with payment of fees of $465 within 30 days from the time the zoning administrator has made a written interpretation or determination of these regulations.