Decision made on day-use area project

Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks released a decision Friday for proposed improvements to Wayfarers State Park in the Harry Horn Day use area.

After a public comment period Fish, Wildlife and Parks has decided to build a ranger station with disabled accessible public restrooms, on the south side of the entrance to Wayfarers State Park. The current restrooms on the Harry Horn Day use area will be torn down and converted into a season park host site, and the existing maintenance building will be enlarged.

In a second phase, a day use picnic shelter, and additional parking will be constructed closer to the lake. The second phase is planned for 2016 or later depending on funding.

Fish, Wildlife and Parks feel that the location of the visitor’s center best serves visitor safety as well as being the most hidden from neighboring private properties.

Wayfarers State Park is one of five state parks that provides public access to Flathead Lake, and is one of the busiest, seeing over 100,00 visitors annually. The majority of the visitors come in peak season between May and September, but Fish, Wildlife and Parks estimates Wayfarers gets almost 50,000 visitors in the off season, between October and April.

They hope by building the visitors center and relocating the Flathead Lake State Park manager from Kalispell to Wayfarers they will create more efficiency.

When the project was initially proposed in February the Community Foundation for a Better Bigfork and other community member expressed concerns about neighbors and the wishes of the Harry Horn family.

Harry Horn donated about six acres of land to the Montana Department of Transportation in the mid-1990s, which was later transferred to Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks. He stipulated that the land be used for a children’s playground and rest area.

Fish, Wildlife and Parks contact the Horn family and received support for the project.

Other concerns brought up during the public comment period can be read in the decision notice on the Fish, Wildlife and Parks website.

The project is estimated to cost about $344,000. Montana State Parks doesn’t receive any county funding for construction projects.

Based on a draft environmental assessment they’ve decided there will not be significant effects on the environment, so an environmental statement won’t be prepared.

The decision is subject to appeal within 30 days of the decision notice.