Stay involved

With the Flathead County Commissioner's decision on Monday to kill the 240-unit Holt Drive development, a saga in Bigfork's land use planning comes to a close.

Whether you agree with the final decision or not, we should all be applauding the level of commitment Bigfork residents showed to the democratic process.

The citizens of Bigfork got involved in ways that they probably haven't in a long time. They went to meetings, spoke their minds, organized and communicated with each other and their representatives.

The question now is: Will the people of Bigfork stay involved with their planning process?

All together, hundreds of people attended planning meetings over the last few months.

But the land use issue isn't going to disappear in Bigfork. In fact it is more important now that it ever was. And the issues Bigfork will need to deal with in the coming months and years will be bigger than just one subdivision.

Real estate prices in Bigfork increased by 45 percent in 2003. The number of houses built in the Flathead Valley doubled since last year. This year, at least two seats will open on the Bigfork Land Use Advisory Committee.

And, most importantly, we are required to write a new land use plan by 2006, according to a law passed by the Montana legislature in 1999.

Fortunately, two groups have formed to help people get involved with this process, the Bigfork Community Advocates and the Bigfork Land Use Steering Committee.

Get involved, stay involved. Now isn't the time to sit back, relax and declare victory.