Open land bonds direct quick growth
Gallatin County experts advise Ravalli officials on the possibilities
by DANA GREEN - Ravalli Republic

It's a novel idea - voters paying to keep open space open, even if they can't access it.

But it isn't farfetched - in fact, it's already been done in Gallatin County, according to Mike Harris, coordinator of the Gallatin County Open Lands Board.

Harris was in the Bitterroot last week at the invite of the Ravalli County Right to Farm and Ranch Board, a consortium working to protect agriculture in the valley.

Harris also met with commissioner Betty Lund Friday, who expressed gratitude that Ravalli wasn't the only Montana county tackling tough growth issues.

“It is easy to believe we are in our bubble,” Lund told Harris. “But these problems are not just unique to us.”

In 2000, with 60 percent of the vote, Gallatin voters passed a $10 million bond measure to preserve and protect open space.

The 15-member Open Lands Board set to work, purchasing development rights and conservation easements from ag landowners to manage growth, preserve agriculture, and protect water and wildlife habitat.

So far, 40-square miles of land have been conserved - a number that will double with upcoming projects in the works, according to Harris.

The easements take landowners' needs into consideration: Most prevent dense development, but set aside a few home sites for family members.

The bond measure was controversial - some folks complained about paying for conservation easements on land that would not include public access.

Other residents believed the money was better spent on schools, or a new jail.

But a majority of voters decided landowners could best manage their own property, despite vocal opposition, Harris said.

“It's not like this is free of controversy,” he said. “I imagine it (would) be controversial in this area.”

Some of the land purchased has been for public recreational use: In 2002, Gallatin County purchased 100 acres of land between Bozeman and Belgrade to construct a regional park.

The park will be equipped with two fishing ponds, an amphitheater and multipurpose ball fields.

The bond didn't pay for administrative costs - that has been funded by the “Open Lands” license plate, to the tune of $170,000 per year, Harris said.

“We expect that to drop off, but we didn't have to use bond money,” he said.

In western Montana, Gallatin County is looked to as a model for innovative planning tools - and other high-growth counties are watching closely to see if the open lands bond is a success.

Right now, Gallatin County officials are trying out a handful of planning tools, trying to find out what works, Harris said.

So far, county-wide zoning has not been one of those tools. But zoning might come in the future, Harris added.

“We didn't want to put lines on a map - but we're (probably) going to have to,” he said.

In Dan Huls' opinion, the advice from Gallatin County couldn't come at a better time.

Huls, president of the Ravalli County Right to Farm and Ranch Board, said board members are in the process of exploring options and tools to help Bitterroot farmers to stay on their land.

With commodity prices low, and the demand for subdivided land high, aging farmers and ranchers face pressure to sell, according to Huls.

Farm and Ranch Board members hope to find out what tools exist - from grants to easements to bond measures - that might help preserve agricultural land and open space.

Board members took a first step in March, commissioning an economic study by Larry Swanson of the O'Connor Center for the Rocky Mountain West, calculating the value of the Bitterroot's ag land and open space. They also commissioned a separate sociological study.

Those studies are due out shortly, Huls said.

The next step - and Harris' visit was part of that - is to explore available planning tools, Huls said.

Gallatin and Ravalli counties are not exactly the same: County demographics are dissimilar, with over half of Gallatin County voters in Bozeman, but only 18 percent of Ravalli County residents living in incorporated towns.

In addition, the Gallatin Open Space Board has been able to work with owners of vast ranches, setting aside large tracts of land in each easement project.

Much of Ravalli County's sprawling farmland, on the other hand, has already been broken up.

“We have already suffered from fragmentation,” Huls said. “Putting that land together in bigger (pieces) is difficult.”

But in Mike Harris' view, the process must begin somewhere - and it usually begins with county residents, and how they want their county to look in coming decades.

In fact, Gallatin County voters were pleased enough with the first open space bond that they passed another $10 million measure in 2004 - to go into effect when the first bond is fully spent.

“If they want to zone later on they can,” Harris said. “The important thing is that the voters decided what their home is going to look like in the future. They (decided) not to restrict growth, but to direct it.”

Reporter Dana Green can be reached at 363-3300 x28 or at dgreen@ravallirepublic.com