'Doughnut' hearing canceled

The Daily Inter Lake

In light of the Montana Supreme Court's decision to send the Whitefish "doughnut" lawsuit back to District Court, the Flathead County commissioners have canceled a Jan. 13 public hearing on proposed county zoning in the two-mile doughnut area.

In a ruling issued just before Christmas, the high court vacated a Flathead District Court order denying the city of Whitefish's application for a preliminary injunction. The Supreme Court instructed the lower court to issue a preliminary injunction to preserve the status quo, pending a trial on the merits of the case.

When the county last year rescinded its 2005 interlocal agreement that gave the city control of the doughnut, the city sued the county and later appealed an adverse District Court ruling to the state Supreme Court.

The county has been taking steps to regain control of the doughnut, amending the county growth policy to remove references to the interlocal agreement.

The county Planning Board last month approved the proposed Whitefish Area Zoning District that would have abolished city zoning and put county zoning in place once again in the two-mile area.

Whitefish City Attorney John Phelps recently said it's his understanding the city will continue to have planning control of the doughnut until the lawsuit is resolved.

The public hearing on the zoning plan may be rescheduled, depending on the outcome of the lawsuit, the commissioners said in a press release.