Zoning efforts build: Georgetown residents want lake protected

By Erin Nicholes of The Montana Standard - 01/15/2008

ANACONDA — Plans for potential zoning rules at Georgetown Lake are moving forward.

“Our membership has told us they want the lake protected,” Chuck Stokke, a spokesman for the Georgetown Lake Homeowners’ Association, said at a recent meeting about zoning possibilities at the lake.

The group plans to ask the Granite County Commission to create and adopt zoning rules for land within its jurisdiction at the lake.

The Deer Lodge-Granite county line divides Georgetown; the former has zoning, the latter does not. The homeowners’ association has been pursuing zoning to control density and protect the lake’s ecology and recreational value.

“A lot of the groundwork has been done,” Stokke said, adding the association has drawn preliminary boundaries for the district that include 300 land- owners. “We’re just trying to figure out how to get the other half done without going through this huge seemingly impossible effort,” Stokke said.

Originally, the group pursued citizen-initiated zoning, which requires residents to draw districts, propose regulations, gather signatures from a majority of landowners then petition the commission to adopt zoning.

But after encountering obstacles — specifically difficulty acquiring signatures from landowners living out of state — the group is now asking for Part 2 zoning, in which the commission would create a zoning district and adopt regulations.

Although the county’s growth policy encourages citizen- initiated zoning, state law allows both types, Granite County Attorney Mark Jones said.

“Part 2 zoning originates through a statute and you can’t simply regulate away the statutory rights of Granite County residents,” he said. “They certainly have the right to approach commissioners and ask them to implement Part 2 zoning. Commissioners are then obligated … not to implement any Part 2 zoning that would be in substantial conflict with our existing growth policy.” As an alternative to zoning, the association plans to ask the commission to consider a neighborhood plan for the lake, Stokke said.

“It’s another way to kind of get in the door,” he said.

Neighborhood plans are similar to growth policies and are applied to designated districts to guide local government when making decisions about development proposals, Jones said.

“The county has to give some See ZONING, Page A5 Zoning ...

Continued from Page A1 sort of deference or consideration to neighborhood plans that are in place when considering any sort of request for development in that area.” The association has asked to be placed on the commission’s agenda; the meeting date and time will be announced.

— Erin Nicholes may be reached at erin.nicholes@mtstandard.com