Valley County approves 200 cubic yards from Lake Fork Pit for Browns Pond parking

Valley County commissioners on June 30 approved donating 200 cubic yards of material from the Lake Fork Pit to the Idaho Department of Fish and Game to build a small parking area at Brown's Pond at the south end of the McCall airstrip off Mission Street.

The donation is intended to move vehicles off the shoulder of Mission Street and support a Project that will include a fenced area to separate people and cattle, a porta-potty kiosk, a recycling container and, in time, a fishing pier. Jordan Messner, regional fisheries manager for Idaho Fish and Game in McCall, told commissioners the parking area is intended for about "6 to 8" vehicles and that the work will require removing roughly a foot of material from the site before building up the lot.

Messner said Fish and Game had previously been granted 200 cubic yards of material from the Lake Fork Pit and asked commissioners to increase that amount. "The contractor told me they're likely to need 400 cubic yards, so about double what I had asked for previously," Messner said. He also said the department has completed permitting with the City of McCall and has a 10-year access agreement with the landowners covering the site.

Messner described recreational use at the site and recent stocking activity. "I think we stock about 8,000 catchables in there a year. We stock them every 2 weeks," he said, and added that Fish and Game recently moved crappie and bluegill from Oxbow Reservoir to Brown's Pond after nighttime electrofishing.

Commissioners moved and seconded a motion to approve the initial donation of 200 cubic yards from the Lake Fork Pit. The motion passed with commissioners responding "Aye" on the vote. The transcript records the approval of the 200-cubic-yard donation; it does not record a formal approval of the later 400-cubic-yard estimate Messner mentioned.

Messner said Fish and Game will acknowledge the county as a project partner on signage, as the department has on previous collaborative projects. Before leaving, he told the board he expected to return the following week for a discussion about a reservoir project.

Details from the meeting: the department plans fencing, a porta-potty kiosk, a recycling container and a future fishing pier; the parking area is planned for about 6–8 vehicles; the department estimates annual stocking of about 8,000 catchable trout and has recently added crappie and bluegill; permitting with the City of McCall is complete; access to the site is governed by a 10-year agreement with the landowner.

No dollar amounts, contractor names, or specific construction dates were provided in the meeting record.