Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Zone Change Lazy Dade topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Planning commission recommends zone change for Lazy Dade Mobile Home Park parcel
Summary
The Columbia Falls Planning Commission voted unanimously to recommend the city council approve changing the north half of 2155 9th Street West from light industrial to CB-2 general commercial, consolidating a long-standing split zoning; the council will consider the recommendation July 7.
The Columbia Falls Planning Commission voted unanimously to recommend that the City Council approve a zone change for the property at 2155 9th Street West, commonly known as the Lazy Dade Mobile Home Park, converting the north half of the parcel from light industrial to CB-2 general commercial.
Planner Eric Mulcahy told commissioners that the property has been split-zoned for decades, with the southern half already designated CB-2 and the northern half I-1 light industrial. He said the city’s growth policy designates the parcel for commercial use and that consolidating zoning would align the site with the policy and the city’s preference to avoid split zones. “This property is currently split zone... the southern half is CB2 and the north half is light industrial,” Mulcahy said during his presentation.
Mulcahy also cited a 2023 Senate bill referenced in the staff report (identified in the transcript as “bill 245”) that, he said, allows residential and multifamily uses in commercial zones; he said the zoning code will be updated to reflect that legislative change. He warned that a change in use could trigger Montana Department of Transportation review and, depending on proposed uses, a systems impact review and a traffic impact study. “When that property converts, there most likely will be a change in access,” Mulcahy said, noting MDOT’s preference that Meadowlake Boulevard serve as primary access from Highway 2.
No proponents or members of the public spoke at the hearing. During discussion, one commissioner said converting a manufactured-home park raises sensitive housing concerns; Mulcahy responded that the commission’s review is limited to the zoning criteria and growth policy. Commissioners asked about prospective uses and noted the possibility of mixed-use development under the legislative change, but commissioners said those future plans are not part of this zone-change application.
The commission first adopted the staff findings as binding and then moved to recommend the zone change to the council. The motion to recommend approval was made by the chair (unnamed in the transcript) and seconded by Kavanaugh; the roll-call recommendation recorded votes of Johnson — aye; Kavanagh — aye; Ping — aye; Fisher — aye. The chair said the City Council will consider the commission’s recommendation at its July 7 meeting.
The planner’s staff report and related materials were identified in the meeting as staff report "CCC 25-02" (staff report number as recorded in the transcript). The commission’s action is advisory; any formal change in zoning requires the council’s final approval and any subsequent permitting or MDOT access approvals if the property’s use changes.
What happens next: the City Council will receive the commission’s recommendation on July 7 and may hold additional hearings, require a traffic study if MDOT or city review deems it necessary, or take final action on the zone change.
