Proposed airport regulations crash and burn
Megan Strickland
Megan Strickland/Valley Journal Lake County Airport Board Member Rick Newman explains regulations proposed for the St. Ignatius airport.
Megan Strickland
Realtor Trudy Samuelson voices concerns about proposed regulations of the St. Ignatius airport.
Megan Strickland
St. Ignatius residents listen to proposed airport regulations.
Megan Strickland
Megan Strickland
Megan Strickland
Megan Strickland
Megan Strickland
Megan Strickland
Megan Strickland
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A group of townsfolk concerned about private property rights quashed proposed expanded regulation of St. Ignatius Airport last week.
Lake County Airport Board Member Rick Newman told town members he would not pursue passing the regulations, which were identical to those passed in Ronan and Polson in recent years, because of pushback from the public.
“This is the draft we had for all three airports,” Newman said. “Two of them have to comply with it, one of them does not. We were here to find out public opinion about it. Apparently everyone has a problem from page 1 all the way back to page 34 … If you tell me tonight that we are done with it, we’re done with it.”
Not a single person in the room of 30 or 40 people voiced support for the measure, which would significantly expand an area of protection for the airport. The document’s purpose was “to regulate land adjacent to the airport to keep it safe and functional for the public, property owners, and continued airport use,” according to the draft.
Newman gave an example of the recent installation of a cell phone tower that went up near the airport as a reason to adopt the measure. The document proposed permit requirements and fees ranging from $50 to $500 for constructing tall structures that lie within the proposed 4,000 feet expansion of the protected area.
“About a year and a half ago, someone noticed a notice in the newspaper about a cell tower going in at the edge of town,” Newman said. “Originally, it was pretty close to the airport, but it got moved … I found out who was putting up the tower and for once they worked with me. They didn’t have to mark it, but they marked it. They didn’t have to light it, but they lit it.”
When other towers have gone up, Newman has had little success at getting cooperation. By putting a 199 feet tall structure height limit in place, there would be increased protection for aviators, with few impacts on property owners, Newman said.
“The two years we’ve had this in place at Ronan, we’ve had no permits, no problems,” Newman said.
A couple of farmers had to top off their trees to comply with the Ronan regulations, but other than that, impact has been minimal. Ronan and Polson had to adopt the regulations to be eligible for funding from the Federal Aviation Administration. St. Ignatius Airport’s runway is too short to be FAA supported, and the runway is unlikely to ever be expanded, Newman said.
Newman’s assertions that the regulations were innocuous and meant to protect the airport were met with hostility from townspeople.
“A bunch of regulations that impact my property is bothering my property,” Claudia McCready said. “When I go to sell my property and do anything on my property and I have to get permission from you, it really puts me off. I think it is totally unfair to all these people here. It is our property, not your property.”
Realtor Trudy Samuelson said there had to be some middle ground that could be struck.
“I see property here, and when I look at that map a good portion of the population of St. Ignatius and the surrounding county is affected by that,” Samuelson said. “When you start to put restrictions on property, you suddenly affect property values. I’m all for protecting the necessary airspace, and I’m sure most people – well, we could plow up the airport, but that’s probably not prudent – are probably in favor of protecting it.”
Resident Ken Scott said people were being vigilant in protecting what was theirs.
“I think the most important thing here to everybody, and I feel the same way is: I’ve busted my a— for what I have, just like everybody else in this room,” Scott said. “I’ll be god———-, if somebody comes in and says ‘Ken you’ve got to take down that communications tower or you can’t build a pond right there, or you have to cut those trees.’ I think that’s the gripe of most people at this meeting.”
Though the proposed expansion of the regulations was dropped, height restrictions remain in place for a smaller swath of land that surrounds the airport. Those regulations were adopted by the St. Ignatius town council in 2002. The regulations do not apply to tribal members.
