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Council approves annexation and rezoning of seven Yellowstone Country Club lots after lengthy public comment over trail access
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Summary
City council approved Annexation 2601 and Zone Change 1077 to annex roughly six acres from Yellowstone Country Club and rezone the parcels to N3 suburban residential, while neighbors pressed the club and the city for written guarantees preserving public trail access.
The Billings City Council approved a joint resolution to annex three parcels near Tommy Armour Circle and Ben Hogan Lane (Annexation 2601) and a zone change (1077) reclassifying those parcels from P1 parks/open space to N3 suburban residential, despite extensive public testimony urging protections for informal trails and public access.
Staff presenter Hunter Kelly described the parcels as privately owned land served by existing water and sewer mains and recommended annexation with standard conditions, including an annexation agreement that would address service connections and special-improvement-district waivers. Agent Taylor Kasparak told the council the parcels represent less than 2% of Yellowstone Country Club ssets, that the club has previously allowed public use of trail access points, and that the club intends to keep four public access points while adjusting internal lot lines so the main east nd west trail routes remain available.
Neighborhood speakers urged the council to secure written guarantees. Bill Cole, a nearby resident, asked the council to "approve both items 5a and 5b, but only on the condition that the traditional and uniquely critical access way... in the middle of Area 2 be preserved." Several residents and long-time trail users said trail access had been used informally for decades and asked for covenants or annexation conditions that would protect access; others supported the annexation as infill that protects the larger club holdings and provides capital for club improvements.
The council considered but did not accept a substitute motion that would have made annexation conditional on a specific negotiated access agreement between the country club and homeowners. Legal staff advised that annexations may be conditioned but that language must be carefully drafted; the substitute motion failed for lack of a second. On the motions before it, council approved the annexation resolution and then approved Zone Change 1077 and adopted the zoning commission findings.
Staff said sidewalks and street-lighting requirements would be handled during the future subdivision process, with variances available where neighborhood patterns make full compliance impractical. The annexation agreement will return for formal adoption and will memorialize service and special-improvement-district waiver details.
