Packed agenda at Lincoln Government Day

Lincoln’s April 5 Government Day meeting covered a lot of ground.

In Town Trails

Karyn Good presented information on the progress of the Envision Lincoln in-town trails project that has been in the works since last year.

“Our overarching goal for the in-town trails plan was to create a connected trails system that would connect our existing assets safely, and would be available to all,” she said. “We realize this is a costly process and likely a very long process so we’re starting small.”

Good said they began looking first at trails in existing rights of way, rather than trail sections that would involve easements through private land, and have chosen to focus on a trail in an area that sees high use from foot and bicycle traffic as well as motor vehicles.

“At this point we’re looking at starting with one trail in particular. That would be Stemple Pass Road. We have identified this trail as being a need, because it connects to the River Park and it connects to downtown.”

She said it would be really wonderful to be able to use the road's existing right of way in town for the trail.

The one obstacle to having a completed path to the Lincoln River park is the Stemple Pass Road bridge, which Good noted is not pedestrian friendly. She said in the end, their goal is to one day have a pedestrian bridge across the Blackfoot River there.

Elisa Fiaschetti, the Rural Community Development Manager with the Governor’s Office, was in Lincoln last October with Lt. Gov. Mike Cooney for information on Envision Lincoln. Cooney was at the time launching Main Street Montana Rural Partners, which focuses on rural economic development and historic preservation. Fiaschetti has been in contact with Good on Envision Lincoln’s progress and believes the trail project would be a wonderful candidate for some federal grants, but that a design cost estimate would be needed. She said the Western Transportation Institute in Bozeman, which is part of the engineering department at MSU, would be able to help with that.

Good said they have been having conversations with WTI as well as other potential partners on in-town trails development, such as the U.S. Forest Service, Five Valleys Land Trust and Lewis and Clark County Planning Director Peter Italiano.

In response to a question from Lincoln resident Doug Vulcan about possible funding through the Montana Department of Transportation’s Community Transportation Enhancement Program, County Public Works Director Eric Griffin noted that program no longer exists, but that it should be possible to explore funding through MDT’s replacement program. Known as the Transportation Alternative Program, it provides funding to local governmental agencies and schools for development of a variety of projects, including trail programs and safe-route-to-school projects, but doesn’t have to be tied to any highway construction projects.

Later in the day Friday, Good, Italiano and County Engineer Dan Karlin measured the right of way on the road. She told the BVD they are planning to have a broader discussion on the proposed trail in early May.

Good said at the meeting that more than 100 people took part in some capacity in the development of the in-town trail plan, from mapping trails to attending informational meetings and workshops to conducting community surveys.

Cemetery District

Lewis and Clark County Commissioners approved a resolution of intention to create a Lincoln Cemetery District at Fridays meeting. Establishing a Cemetery District was part of the 2016 agreement between the U.S. Forest Service and the county that facilitated the transfer of the cemetery property to the county.

The resolution of intention paves the way for the county to formally create the district and then to levy the district. Roger Baltz, county chief administrative officer, said there is no plan for an assessment related to the cemetery district, and that the county commission intends for district costs to be offset by revenue raised by the cemetery board through such things as burial fees.

Although the original agreement called for creating a cemetery district to administer the historic Lincoln Cemetery in Lincoln Gulch, county staff members determined it would be proper to expand the scope to include the lower cemetery along Morris Road. Known as the Memorial Meadows Cemetery, the site was donated by George Anderson in for use as a cemetery.

The Lincoln Cemetery District will have oversight on burials, as well as the operation, maintenance, management and historic preservation of both cemeteries.

As part of the memorandum of agreement with the Forest Service, the Cemetery District will also be responsible for preserving and protecting the historic pioneer section of the cemetery, where residents of Lincoln Gulch were laid to rest during the mining heyday in the 1860s and 1870s.

One part of the required improvements that met with some resistance was the installation of a picket fence to separate the pioneer portion of the cemetery from the modern portion. Bonnie Shown, chairperson of the Lincoln Cemetery Board suggested a fence that was more appropriate to the area be installed instead. She said a picket fence belongs on “a little white house with petunias,” not a mountain cemetery.

Commissioner Susan Good Geise assured her that after the district is created, they can have conversations with Historic Preservation Officer Pam Attardo to agree on what is historically appropriate

“Once this is tied up, the legalities of it, it is our intention to get the heck out of your way,” Geise said. “You guys are doing an awesome job…and you have been doing it for decades.”

Giese admitted the Commissioners may have gotten ahead of themselves in establishing the Lincoln Cemetery Board in 2016, but said the current members aren’t off the hook, although they may have to be re-appointed once the district itself is created.

Efforts to transfer the old Lincoln Cemetery from the Forest Service to local administration began in 2003 after the USFS concluded there was no way to allow an active cemetery on the National Forest.

Commissioner Andy Hunthausen thanked the current cemetery board members and other concerned citizens who have worked on it for so long.

‘I’m grateful for all your service and I’m really glad we’re at this point of transition, he said.

Law Enforcement update

“Jail renovation, the thing that you’re already paying for, is going well,” Lewis and Clark County Sheriff Leo Dutton said during his update at the meeting.

Dutton said they’re about a month into the planned 14-month renovation and are about 50 percent done with the demolition work needed in the basement and on the main floor before renovation work can begin.

He said they have hired Slate Architecture for the renovation, which in turn brought in Tetris Architecture, a firm that specializes in building jails and detention centers. Sletten Construction of Great Falls is the building contractor for the project.

Dutton also said they have been doing tours of the building for the media in the interest of transparency.

“We’ are trying to be as open as we can with what we’re doing because this little project is

only good for 15 years,” he said. “Whoever the sheriff is in 15 years (will be) saying ‘we’d like to renew this levy’…that's why we’re working diligently to keep all of you informed about what we’re doing with your money.

The renovation project has a budget of $8.3 million, with $6.5 million from the bond approved by community voters in 2017 and another $1.8 million through capital improvement funds and the bond premium.

The sheriff's office and Helena Police Department completed their move into the new law and justice center at 406 Fuller in March.

Lincoln-area Deputy Robert Rivera followed Dutton with a report on the number of calls the north deputies responded to in March. He reported deputies provided nine agency assists to help other law enforcement agencies such as the Montana Highway Patrol and responded to three alarm calls, all of which proved to be false alarms and three family disturbances, which were also false alarms. The north deputies also had four animal calls in the Lincoln area, as well as one minor-in-possession, one theft, two welfare checks and 29 traffic stops. There was one DUI, over St. Patrick's Day weekend. Rivera, who is also a deputy coroner, responded to one coroner call in the area last month.

With ATV season gearing up, Rivera took the opportunity to stress that it's important for four-wheelers to stay on the right side of the road in town.

“A four wheeler is considered a motor vehicle, has to be registered, and you have to have a driver’s license to be on them if you’re on a state highway or county road.”

He said they also need to be registered and the lights need to be working.

Although the season has wound down, Rivera also voiced concerns about snowmobiles, particularly those coming into the roadway as cars are pulling out.

Upper Blackfoot Valley Community Council Chairman Zach Muse explained that snowmobiles ride on the north side of the highway because the Montana Department of Transportation leaves a little stretch of snow or ice for them there. However, he noted that Lincoln has the privilege of using snowmobiles in town to go from houses to trails and that it's important to let people who abuse that privilege know they might ruin it for everyone.

Dalton Bridge Replacement

As part of his brief Public Works update, Eric Griffin said the Dalton Mountain Road Bridge is one of two county bridge projects included in House Bill 11 for Treasure State Endowment Program funding.

Griffin said given the legislative session, there is no way construction of the new bridge will happen in 2019. He also revisited the possibility of using the Federal government's off-system bridge program to cover the cost of the bridge replacement. He explained that TSEP covers $600,000-plus, which the county has to match. Under the off system bridge program, the County could give the TSEP money to the state and they would run the project, saving the county the cost of the matching funds. However, he said that would push the bridge replacement out to 2021.

If an upcoming inspection by MDT shows that the existing bridge is still stable, the county will have to discuss with the UBVCC the possibility of delaying the replacement to take advantage of the off-system bridge program, followed by a public discussion with the county commissioners, Griffin said.

As things stand now, he said the project is still on track for 2020.