Dupont talks growth at Bigfork chat

By ALEX STRICKLAND / Bigfork Eagle

Flathead County Commissioner candidate Jim Dupont gave the impression that he might not have been sure what he was walking into when he spoke to the Olduvai Forum in Bigfork last Wednesday evening.

"I really didn't know anything about your group," he confided at the start of his informal presentation at Clementine's on Bridge Street.

Dupont told the small crowd about his background as Flathead County Sheriff and as a businessman and explained that his main campaign platforms are property right and fair enforcement of rules and regulations.

"Lots of things get done because of who you are," DuPont said, referring to exceptions made to county regulations.

Catogorizing himself as a "fairly conservative republican with an open head," Dupont took questions from the audience on issues ranging from road dust to sprawl. He emphasized his desire to allow other elected officials and county staff to do their jobs, free from micromanaging by the county commission.

"I once heard a commissioner say he was the CEO of the county." Dupont said. "You're not, you're the board of directors. Let them do their jobs."

Dupont unequivocally said that he was not opposed to zoning, adding that he felt once enacted, zone changes should be few and far between. He also said he did not oppose neighborhood plans, but that the policies used to notify affected land owners is insufficient and cuts some people out of the process.

"If you're paying taxes and have a mailing address, you should get a letter," he said. Dupont added that he was unaware of the revisions to the Canyon Neighborhood Plan near West Glacier until the final stage, though his residence is firmly inside the plan's boundaries.

Concerning the continued controversy over road dust, Dupont also said he feels that the county needs a more comprehensive way to determine which roads need to be paved or improved to reduce the problem of road dust. He said that the newly formed roads committee was a good start to getting an honest assessment of traffic patterns on roads around Flathead County.

That is a stark departure from comments Dupont made earlier in his campaign where he dismissed the concerns about the health issues stemming from road dust at a candidate debate in Kalispell.

Dupont raised a few hackles when he said that only five percent of the county was developable. He said that with the huge amount of federal, state and private timber land, only a tiny slice was left over.

"There is so much open space already," Dupont said. "How much more open space do we want?"

Dupont said he would favor enacting a county noise ordinance which he said would help law enforcement officials shut down disruptive behavior more easily, rather than relying on nebulous "disruptive behavior" laws.