Poised delicately between the mouth of the Swan River and the delta of the Flathead River where it empties into Flathead Lake is an island of particular importance to the community of Bigfork. Dockstader Island, as it is affectionately called, stands as a persistent reminder of the massive glaciers that scoured the out the trough that is now Flathead Lake. This little rocky outpost and the ridge on the mainland to the north were just resistant enough to survive the Ice Age bulldozer that reshaped the entire landscape of this valley.
Less than 100 years ago this island was the tip of a peninsula connected to the mainland, but the rise in lake level as a result of Kerr Dam and the subsequent erosion of low lying shore severed it completely. It has been an island for as long as most people can now remember. In clear view of much of Bigfork, this island occupies a unique place in physical and cultural landscape of the area. It’s isolation and its relationship to the extensive wetlands on shore have spared it from the exuberant development that has characterized the Bigfork area over the past forty years. Until recently, respectful visits by boat in the summer and foot in the winter were welcomed. Although privately owned, the tradition of Dockstader Island was generous.
All that changed a few years ago when the property was sold. The new owner, apparently unfamiliar with the customs of our community, has conspicuously posted cameras and no trespassing signs all over the area. Clearly, this is his right. However, equally clearly it is a demonstration of an attitude incongruent to the tradition of neighborliness that is well established in Bigfork. Traditions are important to most of us and can be persuasive, but are of course not enforceable.
More recently, however, the activities in relation to this island have gone from inconsiderate to illegal. Work has begun on a bridge nearly 500 feet in length that, should it be completed, would connect the island to the mainland. The proposed steel and concrete structure would be sixteen feet in width and apparently serve as a driveway to access the island. In 2011 the county issued a permit for this construction that, unfortunately, does not comply with the county’s own Lakeshore Protection Regulations. As well, the permit was issued without formal Planning Office review or public comment. The regulations clearly require such review for any project affecting the lakeshore that will have a significant impact to the lake, lakebed, or its lakeshore. The proposed structure is quite obviously “significant” by any meaningful measure, and also specifically violates the regulations because it constitutes a road or driveway, would interfere with navigation, and is discordant with natural scenic values. The regulations specifically limit docks to 60 feet in length, and this structure (which is not being called a dock, but is essentially similar in impact) is nearly eight times that length! The proposed bridge would be nearly four times the length of the old steel bridge over the Swan River in Bigfork, and wider. It would be more than double the length of the concrete bridge that carries Highway 35 traffic across the Swan River. It would be almost as long as Kerr Dam itself!
I believe all Montanans treasure the rights and privileges that go with living in this remarkable place, including the rights that accompany property ownership. However, in order to be meaningful, liberty is always accompanied by responsibility. Lake shores, and in particular that of Flathead Lake are particularly important and sensitive transition zones between private property and the commons which belongs to all of us. They are also delicate areas ecologically. Both the state and the county formally recognized this with laws and regulations designed to protect the integrity of lakes and their shores. The permit for construction of this bridge does not comply with those regulations, nor the open public process required in those regulations.
It appears that, while acting in good faith, the county commissioners made a significant and probably costly mistake in granting a permit for this construction. The property owner has violated the terms of the permit, which on two occasions has resulted in stop work orders from the County. The permit has been extended beyond its original term four times over four years, and still, only the pilings have been placed (which took less than a week). A local citizens group, the Community Association for North Shore Conservation, after attempting to resolve this issue with the county through cooperative dialogue, has reluctantly filed suit in order to get the county to revoke this illegal and ill-conceived permit. It is time for the county to admit its mistake and make things right with both the law and the citizens of this county.
Jeffrey Funk
Bigfork