Wednesday, August 1, 2007

Opinion & Editorial

One of the last acts of our previous three-person Board of County Commissioners was to settle a lawsuit filed in federal court by 14 developers that felt like they had been deprived of their rights in the county's subdivision review process. Maybe that's true. It's a decision that will be made in federal court.

But one thing is clear. Our previous board of commissioners believed it was true when they decided to settle with the litigants. It's understandable. After all, state legislators mandated that every county would have to modify its subdivision regulations to meet the new state regulations enacted in 2005, but they gave counties until October of 2006 to do it. Ravalli County did not do it.

As a result every subdivision in the review process at the time of the deadline was suddenly put on hold until new regulations could be devised and adopted. It took a month. But that meant that the subdivisions involved in the review process at the time were not processed in the legally required timeframe.

Bummer.

To make matters worse, however, the same commissioners that got us into this mess decided, at the last minute, to settle the matter out of court. In fact, on the very day in which the county residents would elect an expanded five-member commission in exasperation over uncontrolled development, the outgoing commission decided to put a settlement agreement in place that would allow these developers to by-pass the Interim Zoning Restrictions also put into place by the voters.

Why the rush? Why not wait and see how the election of the expanded board would come out? How about letting the voter-mandated five-member commission decide if it wants to settle this lawsuit or not?

What's obvious is that the old commission was trying to pull a fast one. And they did. So fast, in fact, that the public did not get an adequate chance to make meaningful comment on the decision. We know because the Bitterroot Star had a reporter at the meeting.

Although the commissioners had been negotiating with the developers for several months, no information was divulged to the public until the meeting was called to order. We were allowed about 15 minutes to review the proposed agreement while the developers took a break to consult with their clients. The agreement was then negotiated and agreed upon without any final copy being produced for public review.

They didn't need any public review, apparently. They had already done their own review, apparently, and found themselves guilty. So they decided to exempt these developers from the new law of the land, the Interim Zoning Regulations.

We believe that the outcome of the federal lawsuit over this matter may not be all that good. But what is clear is that the old three-person commission twiddled their thumbs while the subdivision regulations were in need of revision and then decided to pull a fast one on us and settle a lawsuit over the matter without any adequate public review because they felt their case was indefensible. That may be true. But their attempt at a fast track settlement seems pretty indefensible as well.

New commissioners have daunting task

Dear Editor,

Now that the elections are winding down I think it is time to commend the citizens and community of this valley for their votes of change. It was not just a partisan change, it was a change requested by voters who had enough of the status quo and the prior Commission.

However, as the tides are changing there will be cesspools and not tide pools left behind from the past Commissioners. The Commissioners were warned a year ago in May at a public Planning Board meeting that they needed to revise the subdivision regulations by October 1. They did not heed the warning even though Alan Thompson said it would be a "priority." I suspect that it may have been deliberate to make sure the developers would win one way or another if the 1 per 2 zoning ordinance passed. Not having the new regulations in place set the county up for some potential lawsuits by the developers. Interestingly, the past Commission sets the county up and then settles the lawsuit brought on by the developers only eleven days before the new commission takes form. Mmmm, I smell the cesspool. The settlement was urged on by Fred Thomas representing his insurance company and was agreed on by the Commissioners on June 5th. There was a public request for more time, public input and it was denied. This agreement was made without any public hearing or meeting which is in clear violation of state law. The law states clearly that any meeting of the Commissioners that will have a significant impact upon the public must be posted and advertised and it was not. Why? It is another example of the special interests that people have complained about. It is another avenue for the past Commissioners to protect their developer friends' interests and profits. As a citizen, voter, and payer of the insurance premiums for the county, I would like to have a say whether or not we should fight the lawsuit.

The past Commission needs a thorough audit and investigation. There are strong allegations of corruption by Howard Lyons. It appears that the Commission had given Fred Thomas a handshake deal for insuring the county without posting it for bid. Now, with the lawsuit agreement they are undoing a law voted on by the citizens of Ravalli County by not having the plaintiffs abide by the 1 per 2 zoning initiative. The 1 per 2 zoning was initiated legally and became law. There are provisions within the MCA that state that if more restrictive provisions are made before the final plat is filed that the subdivider must go with the more restrictive provisions. That legal settlement agreement has the danger of setting a dangerous precedent that may allow other developers to sue the county.

If the Commissioners Chilcott and Thompson were doing their jobs the developers would have had a difficult time proving their case. If they had revised the subdivision regulations on time and formed a Board of Adjustment in a timely manner the issue would be moot. A recent example of Chilcott not performing his job is by attending two weeks of the Crawford trial rather than attending to Commission business. He could have been using that time to include the public in the settlement agreement. Sounds more like a paid vacation for Commissioner Chilcott at the taxpayers' expense. Still smells bad.

There will also need to be more changes in the makeup of our "special boards" loaded by special interests. We need to seriously look at taking the Chip Pigmans off the planning board because of conflicts of interest. It is time to reevaluate who should really be on the Streamside Setback Committee, Planning Board and Board of Adjustment. This will be a new and urgent challenge for the incoming commissioners. It is time to clean up the cesspools left by Howard Lyons, Betty Lund, Greg Chilcott and Alan Thompson.

Most of all, it is time to support our newly elected Commissioners as they work to untangle the mess, confusion and corruption left by their predecessors.

Shaen McElravy
Stevensville

Attorney didn't act legally

Dear Editor,

Attorney Ken Bell has violated Montana Rules of Professional Conduct. Specifically Mr. Bell has violated Rule 8.4 (c) - Misconduct - “engage in conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit or misrepresentation”.

Mr. Bell’s employment in September 2002 was by the City of Hamilton. Neither Mayor Petrusatitis or Mayor Randazzo appointed Mr. Bell as city attorney for a two-year term as required by the statutes. As chairman of the Hamilton Study Commission I pointed this out during our term from 2004-2006. Not until May 20, 2007 was this done. Something that goes on for 4-1/2 years cannot be an oversight as Randazzo claims.

Prior to May 20, 2007, Mr. Bell prosecuted many city residents and county residents in city court. Under our state statutes only a city attorney may prosecute in city court. Mr. Bell was not city attorney at the time, thus he committed fraud against these citizens. The records of our city court confirm Mr. Bell’s involment in violation of Rule 8.4 (c).

During the time period prior to May 20, 2007, Mr. Bell prepared many opinions on stationery bearing his name as city attorney and signing his name as city attorney. This is clearly misrepresentation.

Even if these are felonies I think City Council should remove Mr. Bell as city attorney. It is pretty hard to use jail time as his punishment but we do not know what the Bar Association or state will do.

Bob Frost
Hamilton

Tester releases open letter on land issues

Dear Editor,

Over the last few months I’ve been following an issue that strikes a chord with a lot of folks here in Big Sky Country. It’s an issue that isn’t going away. In fact, it’s one that’s getting bigger as wealthy out-of-staters discover Montana and decide to buy up huge chunks of it for exclusive getaway homes.

Let me be clear—owning and caring for private property is one of our greatest American rights. It is the foundation of Montana’s family farms and ranches, like the farm my grandparents homesteaded almost a century ago. I’m a big believer in private property rights. Where would we be today without that right?

But I, like many others, have a problem with folks from other places buying up agricultural land, fencing it off and locking it up forever. That land is available only to an exclusive club of elite and blocked to the workaday Montanan who pays his dues to the state and understands the western value of sharing the landscape with fellow Montanans. What used to be traditional hunting and fishing grounds for generations are fast becoming off limits for ordinary Montanans looking to put some meat and fish on the table.

Out-of-state developers are buying up large ranches across our state with plans to subdivide them and sell lots as “trophy properties.” I can see why wealthy folks are intrigued by the idea of buying pieces of rural Montana for vacation getaways. I have to admit, the glossy pamphlets advertising those properties are nice.

But ordinary Montanans don’t live in fancy log homes and properties showcased in glossy pamphlets. They work hard, build their communities, and put their kids through school hoping they can stay here to enjoy what is so special about Montana.

I want to extend a warm welcome to all people who want to call Montana home. We’re among the luckiest folks in the world, and we’re not an exclusive club. Enjoying, accessing and working the land is fundamental to our heritage. 

Remember how easy it used to be to ask a landowner for permission to hunt and fish on private property? Even before Montana was a state, hunters and fishermen have respectfully used their neighbors’ land. If you’re lucky enough to take an elk from your neighbor’s property, you might give him a backstrap. That’s the Montana Way.

Gallatin County, which has seen some of the fastest growth in the state, has a Code of the New West for folks who purchase rural land. The Code is available online, and I encourage everyone concerned about this issue to read it.

The Code of the New West outlines the realities of living in the rural West. It reminds newcomers that Montanans are respectful of property, and that the Great Outdoors belong to everyone.

I’d like to hear your thoughts on this issue. Feel free to give my office a call, toll-free in Montana, at 866-554-4403.

Senator Jon Tester
Washington, DC

Opposed to gravel pit

Dear Editor,

We hear often of Montana as being the Last Best Place. But it has been a fight to keep it that way with the explosion of subdivisions and homes encroaching on our forests, rivers, and wilderness.

Many public accesses have been blocked by private property owners.

In the Bitterroot valley, in Ravalli County, remains one last place where we can access the trailheads to the Bitterroot-Selway Wilderness. We can actually drive to the trailheads. It is called Lost Horse. A favorite recreational sight and hunting and fishing area for people from all over - horseback riding, ATVing, snow mobiling, outfitting, fishing, hiking, rock climbing, poker rides, camping, and when there is enough snow even dog sledding and cross country skiing.

Fifty years ago there was a gravel pit 4 and 1/2 miles up Lost horse Road, which was later closed. This gravel pit is right across the road from Lost Horse Creek and a favorite camping area. Now the County of Ravalli and Mr. Oliver from the Sula Ranger Station would like to reopen this pit and put a rock crusher there and remove rock from this beautiful sight for the next ten years.

Many, many people are in opposition to this travesty. There was a standing room only crowd of people opposing the reopening of this gravel pit last Monday before the commissioners, but there was a tie vote because one of the commissioners needed more information. So the decision now is in the hands of the commissioners and Mr. Oliver from Sula Ranger Station.

Those of you who moved here for all these wonderful outdoor opportunities and don't want to see an ugly, noisy, dirty gravel pit with the accompanying huge trucks traveling up and down this windy, narrow, wonderful road to the wilderness, should contact the Forest Service and call the Ravalli County Commissioners. Also write letters to your papers.

We can't let this happen to this one-of-a-kind last best place.

Kay Gervais
Corvallis

Stevi mayor made poor decision

Dear Editor,

I am writing this letter in response to the outcome of the Stevensville Town Council meeting on July 23, 2007. The Stevensville Youth Soccer organization has been working for two years to complete two new fields. We have asked for donations from just about every entity possible to help raise funds for this project. We have sold sections of both fields to the public and business entities. We have had two spaghetti feeds, two candle fundraisers, candy bar sales, scratch ticket sales, a booth at the Creamery Picnic, and numerous donations from businesses in the valley and Missoula.

I personally have attended four Town Council meetings, one CDBG (Community Development Block Grant) committee meeting, and a school board meeting to ask for a grant from the Town of Stevensville who has approximately $310,000 in CDs and a savings account earmarked for community development. As most people in this county know there are not a lot of resources available to programs like this, and those that are available have been approached.

The Mayor of Stevensville (Bill Meisner) had a problem with the way our lease with the school was written, in that the school could cancel our lease within 90 days of any anniversary of the lease. On July 16th I personally went to the school board meeting and asked to have this lease amended, which by a unanimous vote was approved, therefore our lease will now be a 10-year lease with no option out within 90 days of the anniversary. Our board went to the CDBG committee board meeting on July 2 and received a unanimous vote from the board members to approve this grant along with the Stevensville Main Street Association for $10,000. On July 9 we went back to the Town Council with the unanimous vote from the CDBG committee to receive the vote for the funds only to be told that there were not enough members of the Council to vote so we were asked to return on July 23.

On July 23, I was present at the Stevensville Town Council meeting. The requested grant for $10,000 to finish the first soccer field was put to a vote by Mayor Bill Meisner. Paul Ludington and Bob Summers voted in favor, Susan Evans and Tom Brown voted no. I asked the two council members why they voted no. Susan Evans and Tom Brown both explained that they did not think this was the best use for the CDGB money. Mayor Bill Meisner refused to break the tie and his reason why was because if he voted yes on the grant and the citizens of Stevensville disagreed, then they would blame him. In my opinion this is a cowardly act. Why is Bill Meisner the Mayor of Stevensville if he does not have the guts to break a tie?

It does not matter if the citizens of Stevensville were to blame him (which I do not believe would be the case), he needs to be man enough to step up to the plate and have an opinion. The people elected him to make decisions for this town, not to be a coward and abstain from a vote to protect his name. These new fields will bring income to this community and it gives our children the opportunity to learn teamwork, build skills and gives them the opportunity to build their confidence to play in high school.

The Stevensville Youth Soccer organization has met all of the stipulations the Town Council asked of us and these three members still refuse to give us a valid reason why they denied us the opportunity to not only give our youth a nice field to play on but also denied this town's businesses the opportunity to benefit from future business from tournaments that could be held on these fields.

The whole reason we asked for this money from the Town was because the school's property was annexed into the Town and we are not eligible for monies from the County for these fields, and the Town has taken away from our ability to have two fields at the Lewis and Clark Park by building a new road across the playing field. I hope the people of Stevensville and Ravalli County will let these three ELECTED officials know how they feel about abstaining from the future of our youth, and the opportunities for growth by the businesses in Stevensville and the surrounding communities when there are tournaments played in Stevensville.

Greg McFadden, President
Stevensville Youth Soccer

Support for McElravy comments

Dear Editor,

In the Ravalli Republic (7-26-07), Shaen McElravy, a mental health professional, took stock of Ravalli County administration. He recommended "tough love" measures to counter a last minute giveaway by lame-duck commissioners to the development interests on election day, June 5th. Without timely documentation or public input, the commissioners agreed to set aside the temporary zoning mandated by Ravalli County citizens, opening up a flood of over 1,000 home-sites.

Shaen's diagnosis and curative measures come from considerable experience in facing challenges to the health of the Bitterroot, and from promoting changes in administration to protect the Bitterroot Valley's quality of life. He organized the Lone Rock forum and the Florence debates for commissioner candidates. He has provided timely letters to local papers suggesting sensible solutions to long-standing problems threatening the Bitterroot Valley. He is to be commended for his generous efforts in support of a healthy environment in Ravalli County. At this critical time, he points to several steps urgently needed. They are (1) Find the commissions' June 5th settlement invalid due to lack of public notice and input; (2) Support the recently elected commissioners' efforts to take our county in new directions, fair and balanced, reflecting the will of the people; (3) Cleanse the planning, adjustments and setback boards of those members who have obvious conflicts of interest.

Thank you, Shaen, for your wise and timely suggestions. May they meet with wide acceptance, and further the efforts of many good citizens on behalf of our beloved Bitterroot Valley.

John Carbin
Stevensville

Commissioner explains quarry vote

Dear Editor,

On June 5th you elected Jim Rokosch, Carlotta Grandstaff and me as your County Commissioners because development in the valley is out of control. It's not that you want zero growth; you want planning, fairness and predictability, and you want decisions based on facts and a clear understanding of the issues. Recently we've addressed recreation and neighborhood safety versus road repair and cost control.

The county road department wants to keep mining the Lost Horse Quarry; neighbors and rock climbers want the mining to stop. Emotions are running high and we've been pressed to make a decision.

At a Commission meeting on July 23rd, the public and the road department spoke to the Commission. Conflicting values are at stake. For recreational rock climbers, high quality rock faces close to roads with opportunities for a variety of levels of climbing experience are rare and precious. The cliffs near the quarry offer such climbing. The road to the quarry is narrow and dusty and runs past many homes. The prospect of huge trucks trundling past every winter for ten years is not a pleasant vision. I'm sensitive to the safety issues involved. But the type of rock needed for chip sealing is rare in the valley. If Lost Horse gravel is much cheaper than other locations, it would be irresponsible to you as taxpayers not to take that into consideration.

Apparent to me at the meeting was that we lacked the basic facts needed to make a decision. Without adequate information I felt it would be irresponsible of me to vote to irrevocably halt the project or proceed with it. For instance, county government has no overview of all the locations where suitable chip sealing gravel is available in the valley. We need the pros and cons of those locations to make a good decision. We have no clear idea of the true costs of removing rock from the Lost Horse Quarry and how it compares to other sources. We do not know how many miles of roads need chip sealing so we can't estimate how much of this special gravel we need. So we heard only a vague notion of how many trucks on the road are needed. There are also questions whether Lost Horse rock is the right quality for chip sealing.

I want answers to these questions before I make a decision. It make take weeks, it may take months. There is no emergency need for chip sealing gravel; we have time to get the facts.

Even if no reasonable alternatives emerge, I would not approve mining the pit without a plan that sets the extent of the removal, prohibits blasting (which could compromise the integrity of the cliff faces), and removes the rock in a shorter period of time (months, not years). If the quarry is mined, there should be rehabilitation of the area when work ends.

Whether or not the site is mined, I want the county to work with the Forest Service to improve the primitive camp site at Lost Horse Creek. If the Forest Service concurs, long range plans could include moving this campground to the quarry site so that the heavily used creek side area can recover. The Lost Horse Road is in desperate need of dust abatement. High use dirt roads like this add to potentially costly air quality problems in the valley. I'm confident grant money can be gotten for these projects.

People on both sides were initially disappointed when I abstained from voting last week. Please know that demanding all the facts before we make decisions is best for the land and our citizens. It not only exposes deficits in our knowledge base that need filled but also moves the county to a position where future choices about gravel or whatever else is at stake can be made based on information. This allows you, the public, to clearly understand the pros and cons of our different options so you can work with us as partners as we make difficult decisions about our future.

Kathleen Driscoll, Ravalli County Commissioner
Hamilton

Re: Republicans in name only

Dear Editor,

I would like to respond to RINO (Republican In Name Only) Steve Hall's letter to the editor and other comments in the Republic.

Steve made some extreme claims about whether I follow the law on voter guides. That seems interesting coming from a person who hasn't been seen around Republican circles at all before and since his campaign for County Commissioner. I have been involved in putting out voter guides for around 30 years and his accusations are easy to make but have no basis in fact. Our Voter Guides do not endorse candidates but only expose a candidate's public position on issues as revealed by responses to surveys, previous votes or public statements. There is no requirement to be a PAC so his excuse is bogus.

The fact is that Steve Hall did not want to answer the questions on the survey solely because he did not want people to know what they are. The issues were abortion, special rights for homosexuals, gun control, local regulations of sexually oriented businesses, and local regulations of casinos. All the Democrats refused to reveal their positions on these issues and some Republicans refused as well. These voter guides were distributed in the valley, especially to churches, during the Primary.

The Lone Rock forum was indeed a more open format with questions accepted from audience members. My two questions were a small portion of the 50 or more questions asked. Hall's insinuation was that I thought my questions were the only important ones.

I began "drilling" Hall with questions about sexually oriented businesses because he was totally ignorant on the issue and it is an issue that has been before the commissioners and will be before them because a sexually oriented business could set up next to anyone's home, church, or school and will probably do so soon. Thus the importance of passing regulations now in the county as Yellowstone County and six other forward looking communities have done across the state. Hall thought these places were harmless until I told him what goes on in them (check out their ads) and the hundreds of people who have contracted Sexually Transmitted Diseases in them (because of their lack of regulations) and the people that have died in drunk driving accidents leaving the strip joints that have been allowed to set up in Montana. This illustrates the importance of at least separating the nude dancing from alcohol.

Hall told me if I spoke like that in a Commission meeting he was officiating at he would have me carried out. Hall was not prepared to understand those issues and wanted to keep his head buried in the sand, which is the sort of thing that allows these places to set up in the first place.

Hall accused Republicans of "name calling" and "slander" which is another bogus accusation thrown out by a man who is apparently not acquainted with the truth or does not want to face them. Any ads the Central Committee produced were based on factual evidence and public comments. The only ones I have heard say they did not like the radio ads are the RINOs and the Democrats that did not want the positions of the candidates exposed to the voter.

A statement by a Ravalli Republic reporter does not change the fact, evident to those who are informed and involved in the political arena, that the Ravalli Republic helped to hide the positions of the candidates on issues important to Ravalli County voters. Where were the articles on those issues mentioned above? History reveals the concern people in this valley have for those issues.

"Quality of life" when used by those Democrats who were elected and the RINOs meant, "I have mine, no one else should have theirs." The results, from those feelings of greed, are very evident in our valley. These "environmentalists" came into the valley, did not like the fact that loggers were logging timber so that others could have homes and that many could have jobs working in this area of renewable resources so they brought that industry to their knees and cost many jobs. Yes, they stopped the clear cutting but now we are faced with a scorched earth on much of the Bitterroot front. It will get worse and our mountains may soon look like the mountains in the Salmon area, with few trees. Thanks to these same people our mountains are covered by noxious weeds that threaten the game that depend on grass for feed.

By making sure that everyone gets to have their own little 2-acre patch of knapweed these same people have made it increasingly impossible for young families to afford a home in the Bitterroot and enjoy this beautiful valley like those who are already set up here. That is their "quality of life" which is a hollow and selfish position.

The sooner people like Steve Hall admit they are really Democrats and move into a more honest position as Democrats the better. Likewise, the sooner the Republicans support the Party's positions on their platform the better. I believe that many Republicans did not turn out to vote because the Republican candidates failed to stand firm on those "values issues" that really make "quality of life" work. And it does not have anything to do with selfishness but does have much to do with selflessness.

Dallas D. Erickson
Stevensville

Zoning effort intensifies

Dear Editor,

On August 7th and August 14th, Dr. Larry Swanson will be visiting the Bitterroot to present information valuable to Ravalli County's countywide zoning effort. Dr. Swanson is the director of the O'Connor Center for the Rocky Mountain West - a research and education program focused on exploring challenges and opportunities facing the intermountain west. His talk will focus on recent trends in the Bitterroot Valley regarding population, economics, the role of agriculture, and on the importance of grassroots involvement in local planning efforts.

The first presentation on Tuesday, August 7, will be held in Lone Rock, at the Lone Rock School gym and will begin at 7 p.m. The second presentation on Tuesday, August 14, will be held in Hamilton, at the Hamilton City Hall and will begin at 7 p.m.

We are pleased to have Dr. Swanson in the valley, for not only is the message he brings worth understanding and appreciation, but because his arrival initiates a series of public meetings focused on Ravalli County's countywide zoning effort. At the conclusion of Dr. Swanson's presentation, staff from the Planning Department will outline the next steps of the zoning effort and what you can expect from the process.

Briefly, after Dr. Swanson's presentations, the next step in the zoning effort involves holding a meeting in each of the County's seven school districts. These "Nuts and Bolts" meetings will have as their focus an introduction to the draft zoning regulations that the Land Use Subcommittee of the Planning Board has been so hard at work on since Fall 2006. Also, the "Nuts and Bolts" meetings will include an overview about Community Planning Committees (CPCs): what their role in the zoning process will be, the support each CPC can expect to receive, and other critical information.

At the conclusion of each "Nuts and Bolts" meeting, people interested in forming CPCs in each of the County's seven Planning Areas (school districts) are encouraged to start organizing and meeting. Planning staff members will be assigned to each CPC to help provide support. I deeply encourage each interested individual to attend Dr. Swanson's presentation and the "Nuts and Bolts" meeting in your area.

Following the "Nuts and Bolts" meetings, there are a series of other public meetings and workshops planned in Planning Areas of the County addressing the following topics: CPC training workshops, zoning question and answer sessions, and presentations about the GIS Land Suitability Analysis and what it means for zoning. All of these meetings, as well as the local meetings of CPCs, are important initial steps towards starting to develop a countywide zoning map.

When the County initiated the countywide zoning project in January of 2006, we knew that creating a quality work plan that allowed for a solid public process that would ultimately result in a quality product would require a great deal of flexibility. To this end, we understood it to be essential that we periodically review progress made to date, identify areas that present challenges, identify areas of opportunity, and ultimately improve the zoning work plan to address changing conditions. An updated countywide zoning work plan can be found on our website (http://www.ravallicounty.mt.gov/planning. You can also find a number of other documents on the website that might be of interest to you, including draft zoning regulations and a draft zoning matrix, an outline of upcoming meetings, etc. Keep connected to the project by checking our website, or better yet, ask to be part of the Countyís planning mailing list for regular email updates. Please also feel free to visit the Planning Department to obtain copies of posted documents.

Many challenges lay ahead of us in this project, but we also see an incredible opportunity to develop an enduring vision of the future of Ravalli County. The County Commissioners and the Planning Department are firmly resolved in moving the process forward deliberately, methodically, and with a focus on quality. We are resolved in providing high quality and professional support to each CPC and all interested citizens. We are resolved in obtaining additional professional assistance to further the merit and excellence this project deserves. And finally, we are resolved in establishing and sustaining the firm pledge to grow in a direction that best serves the welfare of the County.

John Lavey
Ravalli County Planning Department

©2006 Bitterroot Star
This site was Done By Dooney