Informal meetings on a proposed streamside setback ordinance for Missoula County are scheduled in:
- Nine Mile Community Center, Monday
- Evaro Community Center, April 16
- Frenchtown Fire Station, April 17
- Clinton Women's Club, April 19
- Missoula County Extension Office, April 23
- Swan Community Center, April 24
- Lubrecht Experimental Forest, April 26
- Seeley Lake Chamber of Commerce, May 8
All meetings are at 7 p.m. For directions, call Mel Waggy at the Office of Rural Initiatives at 258-3707.
Over the past year, the Missoula County Office of Rural Initiatives and the Clark Fork Coalition crafted a proposal to create a streamside setback ordinance for new development.
Starting next week, they're going to find out just what county residents think of the idea.
The proposed ordinance will be unveiled in a series of informal public meetings that begin at the Nine Mile Community Center on Monday at 7 p.m.
“There's a growing recognition that too much of the rapid development we're seeing in western Montana is occurring too close to our rivers and streams,” said Matt Clifford, conservation director and staff counsel for the nonprofit Clark Fork Coalition. “It's understandable that people want to live as close as they can to our spectacular rivers, but too often they don't realize that they are destroying the things that make these waters so special - particularly their ability to move and function over time, and to provide habitat for fish and wildlife.”
A number of Montana counties have already established laws to protect rivers and streams from development too close to their banks.
The 2007 Legislature recently rejected legislation that would have established a statewide setback law. That proposal faced strong opposition from the Montana Association of Realtors, which advocated for locally developed ordinances.
Missoula County's proposed setback ordinance attempts to find a balance between protecting natural values while not limiting private property rights too severely, said Mel Waggy, a landscape scientist with the Office of Rural Initiatives.
The two organizations also want to ensure that setbacks wouldn't come with a huge price tag for either the county or the landowner.
“We didn't want to develop something that was arduous and costly,” Waggy said.
The proposed ordinance defines the setback area based on the extent of streamside riparian vegetation, which specialists say roughly corresponds to the areas of flood risk, future channel migration and high-value wildlife habitat.
“Fixed, one-size-fits-all setbacks often end up being more restrictive than necessary in some places and not protective enough in others,” Clifford said. “They can end up failing to protect both private property rights and streams. We are determined to do better than that.”
In areas where the riparian vegetation has either been manually removed or destroyed by grazing, Waggy said, the county would refer either to federal floodplain designations or to a numeric value established by the county for different rivers and streams.
The draft ordinance calls for a 200-foot setback on the Clark Fork, Bitterroot and Swan rivers. A 150-foot setback would be imposed on the Clearwater and Blackfoot rivers as well as Rock Creek. On Ninemile, Rattlesnake, Pattee, Lolo and Morrell creeks, there would be a 100-foot setback.
“These numeric setbacks would only be used if the riparian area or floodplain designations were insufficient,” Waggy said.
The organizations expected the numeric setbacks would be used only in rare circumstances. The draft ordinance also contains a provision for variances, which would provide additional protection for private property rights.
Development too close to rivers and streams can be dangerous and expensive for both homeowners and the public, Clifford said.
“We see a lot of homes being built in places where it's not a matter of if they will be threatened by floods, but when,” he said. “People forget that, because we have not seen a truly major flood around here in decades. But sooner or later, it will happen and the costs will be huge.”
The upcoming series of meetings around the county will give people a chance to learn more and voice their opinions on the proposed ordinance, Waggy said. There will be formal public hearings when the ordinance comes before the county planning board and county commission.
Additional informal meetings are scheduled at the Lolo School on Wednesday, the Evaro Community Center on April 16, the Frenchtown Fire Station on April 17, the Clinton Women's Club on April 19, the Missoula Extension office on April 23, the Swan Community Center on April 24, the Lubrecht Experimental Forest on April 26, and the Seeley Lake Chamber of Commerce on May 8.
For directions, call Waggy at the Office of Rural Initiatives at 258-3707.
Reporter Perry Backus can be reached at 523-5259 or at pbackus@missoulian.com
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