Article published May 17, 2007

Commissioners say they'll keep open minds on rezoning

By RICHARD ECKE

Tribune Staff Writer

Two county commissioners who in the fall voted to approve a zone change for the proposed coal-fired Highwood Generating Station site east of Great Falls promised Wednesday that they'll be open-minded a second time around.

"It depends upon the evidence presented," Commissioner Joe Briggs said.

"We'll just keep an open mind," agreed Chairman Lance Olson. A third commissioner, wind-energy proponent Peggy Beltrone, voted against the zone change for the coal plant.

Last year's zone change is expected to be nixed next week in the wake of court cases. Lawyers for Cascade County and people who sued the county in December over the zone change agreed this week that the county would cancel the zone change and amend its zoning regulations to conform to state law.

Cascade County commissioners are scheduled to repeal the zone change for the coal-fired power plant site at next Tuesday's regular commission meeting, set for 9:30 a.m. at the Courthouse Annex, 325 2nd Ave. N.

On Wednesday, Olson shrugged off criticism from plant opponents after he sought this week to minimize the county's mistakes made during the rezoning process.

"I still think it was a small procedural error," Olson said. "They have their opinion and it's OK."

"We found an error in the procedure," agreed Briggs. He added that the extent of the error didn't matter, since the process is being started anew.

Anne Hedges, program manager for the Montana Environmental Information Center in Helena, said coal-fired power plant foes "look forward to the new process" and hope people's views will receive "fair consideration."

Briggs and Theresa Diekhans, deputy county attorney, predicted the Urquhart family, which owns the land, will reapply for the zone change. Such a change would shift agricultural land to heavy industrial use. Members of the Urquhart family were not immediately available for comment on Wednesday.

Diekhans noted the coal plant site is not the only zone change that will encounter delays in the coming weeks.

"We have other people that are waiting in the wings," she said.

Diekhans provided a timeline of what will happen next in terms of the coal-plant site:

Commissioners will vote on voiding the zone change next Tuesday.

The County Planning Board will hold a public hearing at 9 a.m. May 29 in the Courthouse Annex to consider amendments to the county zoning regulations that would make the rules conform to zoning case law. She called it "a procedural administrative cleanup."

County commissioners will hold a public hearing on the revised zoning regulations at 9:30 a.m. June 12 in the Courthouse Annex. People will have 30 days to comment on the changes following the hearing.

A new zone-change request for the coal-fired plant site could be submitted around July 13, she said.

That would begin the rezoning process again.

Diekhans said the Urquharts could probably apply for another zone change before mid-July, but it couldn't be acted upon until the new zoning regulations are in place.

Tim Gregori, general manager of plant developer Southern Montana Electric Generation & Transmission Cooperative, said he believes the Urquharts will resubmit the zone-change request.

Gregori downplayed the effects of this week's zoning developments, saying no "substantive issue" was raised.

"I don't think it's going to have any effect at all," Gregori said. "This is a procedural matter."

The federal Rural Utilities Service gave the project a positive record of decision on May 11, he noted. As a result, Gregori said he believes it is more likely that Cascade County will once again approve the zone change.

Hedges theorized the county "has an independent duty" to look out for neighbors near the plant site, adding that voters in the county did not elect commissioners to be "a rubber stamp for the federal government."

She added that she believes plaintiffs in the lawsuit raised "substantive issues," as well as procedural ones.