State proposes to remove old homestead on Bigfork's north shore

One of the last remaining homesteads on the north shore of Flathead Lake may be torn down.

Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks is seeking public comment for the Osprey View Fisheries Conservation Area draft environmental assessment. FWP proposes to remove debris, discarded lumber, and buildings from an old home site located on Flathead Lake near Bigfork.

Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks says it proposes to improve public safety and restore the floodplain to natural conditions at the Osprey View Fisheries Conservation Area by removing one standing building, one collapsed building, an old pile of lumber, old household debris, and scattered foundational materials in the northwest corner of the property at 490 Holt Drive in Bigfork. The state purchased the Osprey View Fisheries Conservation Area using Bonneville Power Administration fisheries mitigation dollars in 2009 to help protect water quality within Flathead Lake. In November 2012, a cultural survey was completed that determined there were no National Register of Historic Places-eligible cultural resources on the property, Kris Tempel, resource specialist with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, said. The standing building and the collapsed building were determined by the cultural survey to have once been bunkhouses associated with a homestead and barn built in the 1930s. She said in the environmental assessment that the state recognizes the uniqueness of the one remaining bunkhouse on the property, but does not have the funds to repair or maintain the building.

Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks has come up with three alternatives for the property.

Alternative A: No Action

Under the No Action Alternative, FWP would not remove the building or any of the debris from the property. The northwest corner of the property would remain unsafe for the recreating public, the state says.

Alternative B: Proposed Action

Under the Proposed Action, FWP will put the clean-up out to bid for removing the buildings, lumber, and other various debris. The state would help to keep the cost of this clean-up low by allowing the contractor to salvage the remaining useable wood on the property in partial or full compensation for the clean-up.

Alternative C: Modified Proposed Action – Considered, but dismissed.

Under this alternative, FWP would remove debris and the collapsed building, but the state would retain the one building that remains standing. The state would also secure that structure inside fencing, or by some other means, to insure public safety and prevent additional theft of remaining lumber.

This alternative was considered, but ultimately dismissed because FWP does not believe allowing the building to safely deteriorate over time would maintain the character of the property. If FWP left the standing structure in place, safety measures would have to be taken to keep people from entering the building, and the building’s openings would all have to be boarded up and a fence constructed around the structure to discourage vandalism and entry, the state said in its environmental assessment.

Since FWP does not have the funding to repair the structure or maintain it over time, the building would eventually collapse, the state said.

Dave Hadden, who lives across the street from the historic structure, said the remaining homestead is part of Bigfork’s past. “It’s evocative of Bigfork’s past and sits like a sentinel over the North Shore,” he said. “But it would take money and commitment. As it is, the area does pose a hazard to public safety, so it’s understandable that the agency would propose to remove it and clean up the site.

“I think it would be neat if the community decided to conserve the old bunkhouse.”  

The buildings are at adjacent to the federal waterfowl production area.

The draft environmental assessment is out for public review through 5 p.m., Sept. 23. Copies of the draft are available at the FWP office, 490 N. Meridian Rd., Kalispell; Montana State Library, 1515 E 6th Ave., Helena; FWP State Headquarters, 1420 E 6th Ave., Helena; the FWP web site, and at local libraries.

Comments can be mailed to Nancy Ivy, Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks, 490 North Meridian Road. Kalispell, MT 59901, or

e-mail: nivy@mt.gov.