Candidate wants to bring business to the valley

When Gary Krueger talks about why he decided to run for Flathead County Commissioner for District 3, the seat now held by Dale Lauman, it’s all about public service.

“I was a volunteer fireman when I was young and healthy, and I’ve been on the West Valley School Board for 22 years,” he said. “I’ve always been public service oriented.”

The 53-year-old Republican candidate has also served on the Flathead County Board of Adjustment about four years and the West Valley Land-Use Advisory Committee for about six years. He says he’ll have to resign from all three positions if he wins election.

“Some people don’t understand that being a county commissioner is a 24-hour job,” he said. “It’s a public service more than a job. People will knock on your door or come up to you in a restaurant. My philosophy is to go out to the people and know who you’re serving.”

The son of a former county commissioner, Krueger and his sons farm 460 acres of family land in the West Valley and some leased land. They also operate a gravel pit on five acres. They grow canola, wheat and some hay, but the future of farming in the Flathead is less and less certain.

“The county growth policy says we should preserve farm land, but my sons lease land all over the valley and have to move their equipment from place to place,” he said.

Krueger said he’s met with most of the county’s department heads and was impressed with their efficiency and use of cross-training.

“We have good roads, and we’re doing that with less people than in the past,” he said. “If we need to make a change somewhere, the county staff will tell us.”

With his business and land-use experience, Krueger says he has some ideas about job creation to boost the local economy.

“I’ve visited with lots of people while campaigning,” he said. “We have lots of empty houses but no jobs for people who could move into those homes.”

Krueger said he’d like to encourage out-of-state companies to set up corporate headquarters here in the Flathead.

“We have good schools, two ski resorts, recreation amenities all around us and Glacier National Park — and it’s a safe place for families,” he said. “People want that.”

He also would like to make some minor tweaks to the county’s zoning regulations and streamline permitting to encourage business development. A small business is not permitted in the 80-acre agriculture zone, he noted, and an existing business in unzoned areas could be forced to close if the land later becomes zoned and the business doesn’t comply with the “extent of use” provision.

Krueger had his own run-in with zoning and business permitting when he tried to expand his gravel pit to include asphalt and concrete batch plants. After receiving approval to expand his pit operation up to 80 acres in February 2009, he requested that the county’s definition of “gravel extraction” be amended to include asphalt and concrete plants.

The county planning board turned down his request in November 2009, but the commissioners approved the amended definition in April 2010. His request for a conditional-use permit to operate an asphalt and concrete plant received Board of Adjustment approval in July 2010. Krueger, as a board member, recused himself from the vote.

Krueger emphasizes his support of property rights, noting that county government should focus on public health, safety and general welfare as defined by state law. To stay out of expensive lawsuits, the county needs to clean up contradictory language in the growth policy and zoning regulations, closely follow written regulations and rely on attorneys that are “good at keeping us out of lawsuits and keeping us a step ahead.”