Commissioners approve zone change for 1745 Mary Street over owner objection

The Yellowstone County Commissioners voted June 25 to approve County zone change 7-24, reclassifying two adjoining parcels at 1745 Mary Street from Rural Residential 3 (RR3) to Agricultural, after a county planner recommended the change to bring the property into compliance with a prior countywide rezoning.

Karen, a county planning staff member, told the board the Zoning Commission held a public hearing and forwarded a recommendation of approval based on the county's eleven review criteria and the County Growth Policy. The parcels are described as Lot 4E-1 (11.305 acres) and Lot 4E-2 (5.01 acres) in the 15 Mile Creek Subdivision, totaling 16.32 acres.

Property owner Carrie Chapman spoke against the request. "When I purchased this property, it was zoned agriculture," Chapman said. She said the rezoning to RR3 limited how she could use the land, forced additional compliance work and increased her costs — she estimated it would cost about $1,500 to return the property to agricultural status.

Karen and commissioners explained the reclassification resulted from a countywide rezoning effort and that Agricultural zoning applies to parcels of 10 acres or more. Karen said this parcel was one of six properties identified in a prior resolution requiring zoning compliance.

Commissioner (Speaker 3) moved to approve zone change 7-24 based on the zoning commission recommendation and the board adopted the motion; the chair called for Aye and the motion passed by voice vote.

The board closed the hearing and returned the matter to the commission for action. The approval brings the property into the county's agricultural zoning category, which staff said will align the established indoor cultivation use with county regulations and an earlier county resolution.

No appeal deadline or additional conditions were stated during the meeting.