State considering selling land near Woods Bay

By ALEX STRICKLAND / Bigfork Eagle

The Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation is considering the sale of 400 acres of school trust land near Woods Bay and is accepting public comment until April 21.

The land, officially identified as Section 20, T26N, R19W, is located above the town of Woods Bay and includes Estes Lake, a popular recreation spot for local hikers, horseback riders and anglers.

DNRC Director Mary Sexton said the agency is just investigating the sale at this time, and that depending on the public response, other options are on the table.

Sexton said that under a process called Land Banking that was authorized by the Legislature in 2003, the DNRC can sell land and put that money into an account with the intent to purchase other lands with it. Long-term, the effect would hopefully be to have more contiguous blocks of land — like the Swan and Stillwater State Forests — rather than isolated parcels, she said.

To qualify for the land bank process, a parcel must meet certain criteria, one of which is whether a parcel has legal access for things like timber management. The parcel in question is bound on all sides by either private holdings or United State Forest Service land and Sexton said the state does not have any permanent access easement for it.

"I would emphasize that as trustees for the school, we have a responsibility to gain revenue and also to look at the public interest," she said.

On this particular parcel, Sexton said ATV trails have been illegally created up to Estes Lake but that enforcement on such trails is difficult. She also pointed out that while anglers and hunters with appropriate licensing have paid for their access, all other users are required to pay for a $10 per year state land access permit, something many users don't even know about, much less have.

Sexton said that there is the possibility of a land trade or easement with the forest service and that the state is open to talks with local groups like the Flathead Land Trust, should the local consensus be against privatizing the land.

Public comment may be submitted to the DNRC until April 21 and Sexton said plans to hold a local meeting in the Woods Bay area are pending.