4x4 Road RID sees mixed response but general support

A proposed Rural Improvement District on the 4x4 Road east of Lincoln drew about 30 people to the Lincoln Government Day meeting Aug. 3, but with only one County Commissioner on hand it didn't qualify as a public meeting on the topic.

An RID for the road has been in the works for several months after residents who use the road submitted a petition to create a district for soil stabilization and dust control on the 4x4 Road, which provides access to the county's 7 Up Ranch Park along the Blackfoot River.

Lewis and Clark County Commissioner Susan Goode Geise, the sole commissioner on hand at the meeting, agreed to take comments from residents and said she would introduce a motion at the next full meeting of the commission to roll them into the official record.

"We were adamant when this RID came before us that people in Lincoln would have a chance to have their say," she said.

Commissioner Andy Hunthausen missed the meeting due to the death of his uncle, Archbishop Raymond Hunthausen, and Mike McCormick had a prior engagement that had been planned months in advance, Geise explained

Lewis and Clark County Public Works Director Eric Griffin explained the county would handle the cost of grading, watering and rolling the road, but the RID would pay for the cost of the soil stabilization.

If the RID goes into effect next year, each "benefited property" will be charged $72.21 per year. Benefited properties aren't determined by ownership however, but by individual lot.

If they choose to put it into effect this year, the RID would have to borrow money, which would bump the first year cost up to more than $160.

In general, the residents who attended the meeting voiced their support for the RID.

For some, it came down to health concerns such as respiratory issues, while for others it was a matter of the amount of use the road gets by people who don't live in the area.

Bob Petritz, who owns property on Snow Fleury Lane, said he didn't; have a problem with trying to beat the dust, but said they need to consider the use 4x4 Road sees from people using it to access the county park. "You've got the rest of the town and the rest of the county that goes up and down that road and just beats the hell out of it," he said. "The traffic that's on that thing is tremendous."

He also pointed out that people tend to drive the road at excessive speeds, and controls such as speed bumps might help slow people down.

Not all who live within the proposed district agreed with the RID entirely, and the cost proved to be a point of concern.

Richard Dempsey, who favors seeing something done on the road, said the last time soil stabilization was used on the road, it lasted two years. Therefore, he suggested that the RID have bi-annual stabilization to cut the cost to property owners in half.

Jesse Sallin, who also lives on Snow Fleury Lane voiced her concern with paying to be part of the RID, since the stabilization would only be used on the 4x4 Road.

"Why aren't all the roads out there included?" She asked. "Our road is just as dusty and people drive just as fast."

Peter Italiano, the county's community development director, said they could change the program to include the additional roads, but that they would have to start the RID process over.

Griffin, however, said everyone in the RID area benefits because they drive on 4x4 Road to reach their roads, and that he believed a separate district would need to be created for Snow Fleury or Snow Drift lane.

Sallin, who drives just three- tenths of a mile on 4x4 Road, also pointed out that as the owner of two small lots on Snow Fleury, she would be paying more than a property owner directly on 4x4 with one large lot, without seeing the same benefit.

Italiano explained that the county assesses RID costs on a per lot basis for benefited property, rather than on a per acre basis.

As a result, Lewis and Clark County, which will be party to the RID because it owns the single parcel of land that is the publicly accessed 7 Up Ranch Park, will be responsible for $72.21 per year, while Sallin will face an annual charge of 144.42.

Giese admitted the system the county uses isn't her favorite way to do it, and that it bears looking at, but said she also believes it would be more complex if they did it another way.

Although Sallin planned to submit a letter of protest, which differs from a comment, the County would need to receive similar protests from 51 percent of the citizens in the district in order to stop the RID from moving forward.

Tuesday, Aug. 14 at 5 p.m. is the deadline to submit protests and written comments on the 4x4Road RID to the Clerk and Recorder's Office at 316 N Park Ave. in Helena.

A public hearing the on the resolution is scheduled for Thursday, Aug. 16 at 9 a.m. in Room 330 of the City-County Building at 316 N. Park Ave.