POWELL COUNTY GROWTH POLICY Prepared by: Powell County Courthouse 409 Missouri Ave. Deer Lodge, MT 59722 Phone: 406-846-9795 Truly the last best place BOA.AO O CO Lil NTV COMM IS SI N' RS POWELL COUNTY, MO N TANA f<ESOLUTIO OF INTEN TO ADOPli AN ILPDATED GROWTH PO CT FOR POWEU COU TY 101&-B WHIEF .EAS, he P ar, n ng, D pa.rtm nt a d l1 e !Plano ing Board have re (' a : me ded a doptiofl of the attached arn@nde,d Growth Polley; al'id WlrffF.E.AS1 the. Plal"l,iilos Board has hcld publ"c meetJ n and a1 pub1ic lhearirig and taken public oomrr nt rtoncerning the upd.ited Growth P0lk.v, and each County Commis.si ne-r h . reviewed the :tmbllc cmnme:nt:s, ai,d arr ot :the pub.lie comme ts favor adcp,fon of the Policy· and WlrilE F.EAS, e,a h C 1oun·ty Commission er has- review d the r-epoan di recornmend.:1uo ns of Eh e PlaninOB Departm nt. and ttm Plarming Bo rd1 and Uu ir re<1.sons.t erefor ; N0WT.HEREFORE, · he Powi!II C.ounty Board 1of Com mils oners, mn re,gui r ssion with a q1..1oru · m pr se.rrt a It! '!Joli declares it:s INTENfT TO ADOPT the attached updated foweU [0L11nty Grrowth Pol r:,;. /\. its regular meeti g on May 9, 2018 at 1:3□ p. ., t e IBoard of 1C.C1.u,ty Comrnissioner-s wi11 make i · fin Id cision on adop ing h attached upclat d Gro'!Nit h P-olicy. Done this gll'i d _ '!j of M _ y, 1018 SOAR □ OF POWELL COLI NTY CO M MIS, S ONE RS OJI... le Contents INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................ III CHAPTER I – CONDITIONS AND TRENDS ..................................................................... 1 PLANNING AREA ..................................................................................................................................... 1 POPULATION ............................................................................................................................................. 1 ECONOMICS ............................................................................................................................................... 8 HOUSING ................................................................................................................................................... 16 LAND USE ................................................................................................................................................. 22 PUBLIC FACILITIES ............................................................................................................................... 45 TRANSPORTATION ............................................................................................................................... 51 NATURAL ENVIRONMENT ............................................................................................................... 55 CHAPTER II – GOALS, OBJECTIVES AND POLICIES ................................................... 62 GOAL No. 1 – Community Design and Development ........................................................................ 64 GOAL No. 2 – Economic Development................................................................................................ 67 GOAL No. 3 – Transportation and Traffic ............................................................................................ 69 GOAL No. 4 – Natural Resources ........................................................................................................... 70 GOAL No. 5 – Public Facilities................................................................................................................ 72 CHAPTER III – ISSUES, CONCERNS, OPPORTUNITIES AND CONSTRAINTS ....... 74 ISSUES AND CONCERNS ..................................................................................................................... 74 COMMUNITY ISSUES AND CONCERNS ....................................................................................... 78 OPPORTUNITIES AND CONSTRAINTS ......................................................................................... 79 AREAS OF SPECIAL CONCERN ........................................................................................................ 83 CHAPTER IV – LAND USE PLAN ...................................................................................... 88 THE PLANNING PROCESS ................................................................................................................. 88 LAND USE PLAN..................................................................................................................................... 89 Powell County Growth Policy 2017 - i - CHAPTER V – IMPLEMENTATION................................ ................................................. 93 IMPLEMENTATION MEASURES ................................93 ...................................................................... IMPLEMENTATION SCHEDULE ................................ 104 ................................................................... IMPLEMENTATION ACTION PLAN ................................ ............................................................ 104 PLANNING COORDINATION ................................ 105 ........................................................................ PUBLIC HEARING PROCEDURE ................................ .................................................................. 109 REVIEW AND AMENDMENT ................................ 110 ......................................................................... Powell County Growth Policy 2017 - ii - INTRODUCTION Powell County has adopted updates to its Comprehensive Plan. The current document includes a set of goals and objectives supported by a public input process conducted by the Planning Board. The goals, objectives and policies are listed in the current Comprehensive Plan & Growth Policy and are used to help develop a land use plan for Powell County for the area outside of the Deer Lodge City- Powell County Planning Board area. The county document included background data as well as a series of reference maps kept in the Planning Department. Since the adoption of the plan update, the county has been actively pursuing implementation by developing and enforcing local subdivision regulations and a set of county zoning and development regulations. The Powell County Zoning & Development Regulations and the Powell County Subdivision Regulations are under review at this time. After the passage of the growth policy statute, 76-1-601, MCA, by the 1999 Legislature, Powell County amended its Comprehensive Plan and adopted it as the Powell County Comprehensive Plan & Growth Policy in November 2006. That Comprehensive Plan & Growth Policy met all of the requirements of state law. In this 2017 version, the document is named simply, the “Powell County Growth Policy,” to be consistent with state law. It is the intent of the Powell County Planning Board that the document included herein be considered as the official update to the November 2006 Growth Policy. This 2017 Growth Policy contains all the elements of the 2006 Comprehensive Plan & Growth Policy. It contains the same information and continues to be a valuable reference for planning in the county. The Powell County Growth Policy is intended to serve as a planning guide for local officials and citizens throughout the planning period from its adoption up to the year 2026. It is a long range statement of local public policy providing guidance for managing and accommodating development within the county. The plan is designed to be used by local government officials as they make decisions that have direct or indirect land use implications. Further, it is designed to be used by officials of other government agencies (federal, state and adjacent local entities) as a framework for coordinating their land use planning efforts in and adjacent to the county. The document will be reviewed and, if necessary, updated at least every five years during the planning period. Powell County Growth Policy 2017 - iii - The Growth Policy includes an analysis of existing conditions, trends and resources in Chapter I. Population and economic conditions as well as other demographic indicators are summarized in the front section of the document, and supporting data is included in the appendix, a separate document kept in the Powell County Planning Department. Population projections and trends in land use, housing, economic conditions, local services and natural resources are discussed in Chapter I. Public input has been an ongoing process by the Powell County Planning Board in order to provide ample opportunity for all voices to be heard prior to the formulation of goals, objectives and policies that will provide guidance in the shaping of the Land Use Plan and implementation measures. The board solicited public opinion on a variety of issues through a series of community meetings in the “Rural Communities” of the county, and through information made available by the Planning Board and County Commission. Chapter II of the report contains a listing of goals, objectives and policies adopted for use in implementing the Growth Policy. Chapter III includes a discussion of important county planning issues, development constraints and opportunities. Chapter IV includes a discussion of the intent of the plan and shows preferred development areas by selected classifications within the planning area. Chapter V contains the Implementation Strategy. Background information on population, housing, economics, natural resources, etc., is included in