The Blaine County 2025 plan to curb runaway growth cleared its first hurdle last week when the county Planning and Zoning Commission recommended approval of four proposed zoning ordinances.
The recommendation Thursday, April 27, capped off an intense review process that included seven three-hour hearings and extensive amounts of public comment in three weeks.
"I've grown up a lot," P&Z Chairman Larry Schoen said with tired eyes Thursday night. "We gave serious consideration to all of the public comments and I'm grateful to the public for their participation."
Schoen, who's also a candidate for county commissioner representing southern Blaine County, said he read every single public comment submitted.
The ordinances, which were partially revised by the seven P&Z members during the review process, will now go before the county's Board of Commissioners. The commissioners' first meeting on the matter will be a public workshop May 18.
"I hope sincerely that this is the beginning of concerted, cooperative, regional planning efforts," Schoen said. "Blaine County 2025 has established the will to do it, and I think the community expects it."
Schoen said he'd like to see issues such as housing and regional transportation addressed in future planning efforts, and that the cities and the county must work together to achieve goals outlined by the community in the comprehensive plan and 2025 workshops.
"It's my feeling that the public wants their city, county and agency leaders to work together," Schoen said.
Schoen, who owns a farm along Silver Creek where he grows malt barley and dairy alfalfa, was named the environmental farmer of the year by Coors Brewery in 2003. He believes the new zoning ordinances should focus on protecting the county's natural resources while retaining certain rights for the small farmer, such as allowing farmers to build family parcels on their land for immediate family members.
"We have recommended changes that increase flexibility for the landowner and increase flexibility to protect the environment and sensitive areas," Schoen said.
Both Schoen and P&Z Commissioner Chip Bailey are fans of downzoning federal lands to discourage future land sales and development. The proposed ordinances would downzone the county's federal land from A-10 (one unit per 10 acres) to RR-40. Schoen and Bailey suggested extending that downzone to 1 unit per 640 acres.
"We are all scared about the privatization of these lands," Schoen said. "We don't want some guy to get the idea of building a gated estate out in the wilderness."
The P&Z commissioners met Tuesday night to make sure their recommended revisions to the ordinances are correct. The meeting was a formality and was not expected to alter the commission's recommendation.
The 2025 planning effort was sparked by the county commissioners in January 2005 to address future growth and development concerns. At that time, the county also enacted a moratorium on all subdivisions and hired Clarion Associates, a national land-use consulting firm, to conduct a public outreach campaign to determine how citizens want to direct future growth. Clarion and the county's planning staff then crafted the zoning ordinances according to the public's will—focus development in the cities while preserving agriculture, open space, and natural resources.
An additional three zoning ordinances—mainly dealing with floodplain and riparian areas, public land and wildlife—will be introduced to the P&Z in June.
The moratorium will expire in July 2006, which is when the county would like to have its new zoning ordinances in place.
