Property owners along the section of Cottonwood Lane from Spruce Street to Juniper Street have signed on with Richard "Ted" Steiner to request Missoula County abandon this section of right of way. The middle stake represents the center of the right of way for Cottonwood Lane (black line noting two end stakes).
SEELEY LAKE – Business owner Richard "Ted" Steiner has filed a petition along with all adjacent landowners requesting a portion of Cottonwood Lane in Seeley Lake be abandoned. A physical site inspection was conducted June 22, according to Carrie Sokoloski, representative for Steiner. The final hearing for public comment regarding the petitions is set for July 21 at the Missoula County Board of County Commissioners (BCC) meeting.
The section of proposed roadway for abandonment is the easterly portion of Cottonwood Lane located between Juniper Drive and Spruce Drive, Seeley Lake. The petition states, "The portion of Cottonwood Lane described above has never been developed or used as a right-of-way or access by any adjoining property owner. It is located on the edge of a large [depression] that is active as a Class III landfill utilized by a local lumber mill. It has been classified as "unusable" by the Montana Department of Revenue. No adjacent landowners use the property as access. It is undrivable in its current state. The only value it presents is in the potential increase in the size of adjacent properties. Without significant engineering and fill, the road could not be developed and used as a public right-of-way due to the nature of the landfill material. All adjacent properties may be accessed via Juniper Drive or Spruce Drive."
Steiner is looking to expand his storage unit business on Spruce Drive, said Sokoloski. Access to the additional 15 feet of property gained by Steiner would allow better access for customers using the storage facilities. Landowners of adjacent properties have signed off on the petition for abandonment of the roadway.
At a June 9 hearing, Steve Niday, Missoula County Public Works Land Survey Manager, presented information collected from aerial imagery and cadastral information available within the Missoula County property information system. In Niday's report to the BCC, he stated the right-of-way is currently of little or no use as a road due to wood waste and fill material placed within the right-of-way by Pyramid Mountain Lumber. At this time, the investigation also determined the right-of-way may be necessary in the future for road or public utility use.
"We got permission from adjacent landowners to fill because the depression was large," said Todd Johnson, President Pyramid Mountain Lumber. "It started on other people's property. Now they have flat ground."
The Seeley Lake Regional Land Use Plan envisioned Pine Drive becoming a main street off Highway 83, Cottonwood Lane would be an important cross street connection. Niday said the undersigned road investigators recommend against abandoning that portion of the road right of way described in the petition.
Sokoloski commented at the meeting that she requested to be notified of the site inspection at the first hearing in May. The petitioner feels a physical site visit is important since the aerial imagery on file at the county is old. The petitioners were not notified of the site inspection and were unable to participate since it was done in Missoula in Niday's office. Sokoloski said the petitioners thought conflicting schedules had delayed any site visit and were surprised the petition was on the agenda.
Based on Sokoloski's comments, the BCC tabled further discussion until a physical site inspection was completed.
The BCC will discuss Cottonwood Lane at the July 21 meeting at 2 p.m. The full petition with documents are available to view at: https://www.seeleylake.com/home/customer_files/article_documents/cottonwoodlanepetition.pdf To comment email: bcc@missoulacounty.us or attend the final hearing.
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