The controversial bridge project on the north shore of Flathead Lake has hit yet another series of speed bumps, after the county denied three floodplain development permits and the Army Corps of Engineers sent a cease-and-desist letter to the developers.
The developer Jolene Dugan, who is often represented by her father Roger Sortino, has already begun construction on the bridge that will connect the mainland to an island that was once a spit of land.
Dugan submitted an application for a lakeshore construction project for the access bridge in 2011, and the Flathead County Commission approved the project that year.
Since construction began, the bridge’s dimensions have changed and permits have been modified. In March, the county commission amended the project’s permit to extend the structure from 481 feet to 539 feet in length.
However, on May 7, the county commission denied the developers’ application that would have allowed them to bring in a rock crusher to break down some of the riprap on the shore.
And on May 8, the Flathead County Planning and Zoning Office denied the developers’ requests for three floodplain development permits that sought to create ponds within the 100-year floodplain.
According to a letter from BJ Grieve, the county planning director and floodplain administrator, the applications for these requests did not “adequately demonstrate compliance with the review criteria” for a floodplain permit, and were subsequently denied.
Included in the letter was the staff report regarding the ponds, wherein it is determined that the applicant did not provide enough convincing evidence that the ponds would not negatively affect neighboring properties if they were to flood.
And on May 11, the Army Corps of Engineers sent a cease-and-desist letter to Dugan and Sortino, serving as a notice of violation for the “unauthorized discharge of dredged or fill material into Flathead Lake and its adjacent wetlands.”
The letter refers to earthen or gravel fill, “along with structural planking material acting as fill,” were placed in Flathead Lake. The letter said the road was approximately 15 to 30 feet wide and 1,000 feet long, and “was constructed in waters of the U.S. without prior authorization.”
The letter then tells the developers to stop all activity related to the unauthorized fill, but “does not prohibit or limit all other actions or activities which do not place fill in jurisdictional waters of the U.S.”
Finally, the letter informs the developers they have 15 days to respond with details about the “unauthorized” work, dates and times work occurred, details about the dimension of the fills used, and details about the equipment used.
Copies of the letter were sent to county, state, and tribal agencies.
The Beacon called Sortino for comment on the bridge project’s status, and instead received a call from Randy Overton, a hydrogeologist with RLK Hydro, Inc.
Overton said he’s worked with Sortino before and was calling on his behalf, and though the Army Corps of Engineers’ letter lists both him and Sortino as recipients, he said neither had received a copy of it.