REGULAR MEETING OF THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
Tuesday June 2, 2026
ALL PRESENT: Commissioner Morse, Chair; Commissioners Waters and White; Board Clerk Teri Reitz; Clerk and Recorder Jeff Martin.
PLEDGE: MOMENT OF SILENCE, Held.
MINUTES May 19, 2026, Elected Officials Compensation Hearing and May 26, 2026. Commissioner Waters made a MOTION to approve the Minutes, Commissioner White seconded. Passed Unanimous.
9:00 a.m. BID OPENING Open and Acknowledge the RFP for MS4 Permit Compliance Assistance The RFP due date has been extended to June 8, 2026, at 3:00 p.m. Commissioner Waters made a MOTION to approve the extended due date for the RFP, Commissioner White seconded. Passed Unanimous.
9:00
a.m. ZONE CHANGE PUBLIC HEARING A.) County Zone Change 735 1232
Johnson Ln A to I2 A zone change request from Agriculture (A) to Heavy
Industrial (I2).
Ms.
Karen Husman, Zoning Coordinator stated that 735 is a zone change request to
change the Par Montana land property from agricultural to heavy industrial,
located generally at 1232 Johnson Lane. This is a zoning map of the
surrounding zoning. To the north is currently agricultural. To the south is
light industrial, which is used for a rail yard. To the east and west are both
heavy industrial with an asphalt plant along with the oil refinery to the
west. Here's your aerial view showing the compatibility to the land uses
surrounding, again, the industrial uses to the east, west, and south. Ms.
Husman showed some photos that are from Google, so you can see the land
itself. This is along Johnson Lane, looking south, this is the north side of
the property looking across to the east and to the West. The zoning commission
is forwarding a recommendation of approval. They felt that it meets the growth
policy goals and it's consistent with the neighborhood character. It meets all
of these goals, and the heavy industrial is consistent with the neighboring
property and the character of the area. It also enables further economic
development for the Lockwood industrial area. Commissioner Morse opened the
Public Hearing. Mr. Dan Gold, Chief Commercial Officer at Weave Industries.
We're headquartered at 2348 North Frontage Road in Lockwood, but we own, lease,
and conduct trucking, construction, mining and farming operations on multiple
parcels of land on Johnson Lane. I'd like to say start by saying that we are in
support of commercial and industrial development in the Lockwood area. However,
zoning changes and the associated infrastructure should improve access to the
area, not further deteriorate access and cause traffic and safety concerns. As
currently designed, Par Montana proposes to construct a rail spur across
Johnson Lane that will block the singular point of access to the properties
north of Pars Rail Spur when it is occupied. No one can realistically predict
the impact that the rail crossing may have in the future. But even the best
intentions don't ensure that Warren Transport's trucks, Weave Construction's
equipment, JDW Industrial Parks gravel, our farming and residential tenants,
and all of our neighbors can get where they need to go in a timely manner.
As for safety, the historical emergency access route from Colson Road to
Johnson Lane was eliminated upon construction of the Billings Bypass. After
conducting a title and county record search, we found no new emergency access
currently exists. The construction of a secondary access route to Johnson Lane
from the Billings bypass would meet the needs for emergency, commercial, and
the general public's access. It would provide the critical infrastructure that
would enable us, and I know others, to support Par's requested zone change. We
appreciate the time that the county and Par have already provided on this
matter but ask that a secondary access route be mandated in conjunction with
the proposed zoning change. We possess the necessary land to allow for
secondary access to be constructed, and we are ready and willing to work with
Par, the county, and the other landowners to make this a mutually beneficial
endeavor. Mr. Peter Taylor, Lund Law, Bozeman, Montana, 6262 South Ferguson.
I'm here today on behalf of PC Land Holdings, who has two lots on Johnson Lane,
1347 and 1355 Johnson Lane. PC Land Holdings, much like Weaver, supports
industrial development here. I think it's just a question if we meet the
definition of what heavy industrial zoning is. The transportation and access
issues are critical to that designation, and they are lacking at this time. PC
Land Holdings is happy to work with Par to see if we can, you know, find a
solution to that access issue and those transportation issues prior to
designation. The planning is relied a lot on the fact that future permitting
will take care of this issue. And I just, frankly, don't see a project that can
happen on those 300 acres where they're going to develop additional
transportation access into and out of this industrial area. We have spent a
lot of time focused on parse plans for the rail yard, which are important
because they will cause critical issues at that single access point. But it's
also a large parcel. So, I mean, a traffic study development will be much
larger than that or could be potentially much larger than that. And there's nothing
to say that Par will go through all the way through with our plans. And, you
know, we could see significant traffic of other types if that isn't developed
in another way for heavy industrial use. If you have shift work occurring
there, you're putting additional cars there. The other issue with just an
emergency access providing there outside of the, you know, emergency medical
response time is, you know, if we have a chemical exposure and we have to get
people out in the railroad crossing, how is the public going to know where an
emergency access is? Are they going to know you have to drive through the
compost yard? So, at this time, we recommend that the board either delay their
decision on this and give Par time to work with Weaver and other parties to see
if we can resolve the transportation and access issue, if they're unwilling to
do that, or to deny. Mr. Jeff Dusch, Refinery Manager for Par Montana. I want
to thank you first for taking the opportunity to review and discuss the zone
change. I think the staff outlined that the subject property is within the
established industrial corridor, surrounded by existing industrial uses. This
request does not introduce industrial use into a new area. Rather, it aligns
the property to the existing industrial character and zoning pattern of the
district. Designation of the property as industrial use is consistent with the
Lockwood Growth Policy, recognizes that industrial development is appropriate
for the corridor north of I-90. After reviewing the application surrounding
land use infrastructure, transportation considerations, and growth policy
consistency, both the planning staff and zoning commission recommended approval
and adoption of the findings under all 11 statutory review criteria. As you've
heard today, we've been in discussion within recent weeks and months with
adjacent property owners. Businesses do have concerns regarding Johnson Lane
access, rail crossing operations, and potential impacts to their operation. We
take those seriously, understand their concerns, and remain committed to work
collaboratively to identify and address those. We believe many of these
matters are best resolved through the project's ongoing development process,
including detailed engineering, design work, agency coordination, permitting,
and continued engagement with those stakeholders. We remain committed to work
with public works, those agencies, and neighboring businesses to identify
practical and reasonable solutions as a project develops. Approval of this
zoning request is an important milestone towards approximately $100 million
investment in Yellowstone County, and it is expected to create new jobs, new
employment opportunities, improve the county's industrial infrastructure, and
expand the county's tax base. We believe the record demonstrates heavy
industrial zoning is appropriate for the property, consistent with the growth
policy and compatible with neighboring properties, land use, and supportive of
Yellowstone County's long-term economic Growth policy. For those reasons, we
respectfully request you to approve the county zone change 735. Appreciate
your consideration.
Ms. Vicki Marquis. I'm an attorney with Crowley Fleck here in Billings, and I
am pleased and honored to represent Par Montana here. Now, I normally wouldn't
be here as the attorney representing an applicant for a zoning change, but as
you've seen from the flurry of letters that have arrived in your inboxes,
there's been some legal issues raised, hence my involvement and my presence
here today. As has already been stated, this zoning change really just aligns
the property with the neighborhood and with the growth policy. It is an island
of agricultural land designated out there among heavy industrial uses. So,
another zone change to heavy industrial is appropriate for that property. Now,
across the street from the property, there is an industrial park and as Mr.
Taylor mentioned, and as he submitted to you in a letter, they're governed by a
subdivision improvement agreement. In the letter, they raised a couple of
things. First, they raised that there's a Heritage Trail easement, but that
only applies to that subdivision. It does not apply on the other side of
Johnson Lane to the property subject to this zone change. So, it's not a factor
for consideration. They've also raised access issues going all the way to the
extreme of alleging A takings, a constitutional violation for takings. I can
assure you that isn't the case. As the record supports, the industrial park
subdivision was created adjacent to a railroad line with railroad traffic
existing to an extent that is not regulated by them and is not limited by them
or by the county. The property is also has access from Johnson Lane and will
retain that access and will retain, the railroad line, which of course runs
railroad traffic that is beyond their control. And none of those changes here.
What is happening here with this zone change is just advancing the growth
policy as it was intended to develop that property as an industrial property.
You heard today a desire to improve access. That's not a requirement for a zone
change to improve the access. They have access to Johnson Lane like the other
industrial properties have. And I'll just note in the case that was cited in a
letter you received yesterday from Mr. Taylor, they cite the Knight case and,
in that case, it's page site is 145. They cite a federal case where they were
concerned that in that case, what they had done is they had treated a
neighborhood on one side of the street different from a neighborhood on the
other side of the street. And they imposed different requirements on those
people and those properties and those parcels. And I just want to note that the
same is at risk here. There's property on either side of the street
One is zoned heavy industrial, the other should be zoned heavy industrial with
no additional conditions. And this doesn't warrant denial of the zone change.
Again, we feel that it should be approved. Hearing no other comments
Commissioner Morse closed Public Hearing. So I will note as some of our speakers
talked here, we received a letter from Crowley Fleck late Friday, and then we
did receive a letter from Lund Law Firm PLCC late yesterday. Those are public
comment. If anybody wants a copy of them, you can see the board clerk, Miss
Reitz, she'll be able to supply you with them. Commissioner Waters made at
MOTION that the board postpone action on the pending zone change application
until June 30th, 2026, pursuant to its authority to delay a decision for up to
30 days following the public hearing. Additional time is needed.
to obtain information relevant to zoning criteria number six, specifically
whether the proposed zoning change will affect motorized and non-motorized
transportation. During this period, I request that the City County Planning
Board gather additional information and consult with Par Montana regarding the
potential impacts of any increased industrial traffic that would result from
the proposed zone change so that the board has a more complete record before
making its decision. Commissioner White seconded. Passed Unanimous.
Commissioner Morse stated that we have passed a delay of 30 days and referring
this zone change back to the planning department. B.)
County Zone Change 736 5415 Rustic Ave. RR3 to RR1 A zone change request
from Rural Residential 3 (RR3) to Rural Residential 1 (RR1). Ms. Karen Husman,
Zoning Coordinator stated zone change 736 is a zone change request from rural
residential 3 to rural residential one, which currently allows a 3 acre minimum
to allow one acre minimum. The subject property is surrounded by RR1 and RR3
with smaller acreages anywhere from one to six acres within those districts.
The proposal includes a potential request to parcel off the one area, one acre
area where the house sits on the corner there highlighted in green and here are
some photos of the subject property. That's the existing house. The zoning
commission is forwarding a recommendation of approval. It meets the goals of
the growth policy and the 11 review criteria, predictable land uses, and it
promotes the developments that are compatible with the surrounding area. Here
is the site plan submitted by the applicant showing that depiction of that
one-acre parcel. Commissioner Morses stated that the commissioners had some
question at discussion. Do they just want the one-acre parcel to RR1 and the
remainder is going to be RR3, or do they want the entire 10 acres so that they
can subdivide them all into one-acre parcels? Ms. Husman stated the request is
for the entire 10-acre parcel to be RR1. I don't know of any other plans to
parcel it off except for the one acre at this time. Commissioner Morse
responded I guess why would they do that if they really just want the one? If
they really just want to break off the house, why do they want the rest of it
going to RR1? Ms. Husman stated she did not have an answer for that.
Commissioner Morse asked if they can approve it saying that they just do RR1
for the one acre that they're requesting and the remainder stays in RR3? Ms.
Husman stated unfortunately, on a zone change application, you have to act on
the application they have submitted. So, we can't do a lesser when it comes to
a zone change. That was what was publicly noticed and that's what they were
applying for. Commissioner Morse opened the Public Hearing. Mr. James Papez, I
live at 5420 Molo Road. I am the applicant's agent. The application as
presented was to cordon off that one acre piece of property as RR1. The rest
will remain RR3 as you guys had mentioned. That's what was presented to the
neighborhood meeting and on the application. Commissioner Morse stated that
Karen just told us that you can't. I think Karen just told us the opposite that Karen,
can you come up here again just to make sure we heard you correctly? Because I
Ms. Karen Husman stated we have some conflicting information on the application
itself. Commissioner Morse stated that they will hear Mr. Papez out, and I'll
make a motion at the end of this, and I think you'll have time to figure out
what we're going to do here so it's clear. Mr. Papez stated that yes, that's
the intent is to cordon off the existing southeast corner of the property has a
single-family residence on it. The applicant would like to have the opportunity
to potentially sell off that residence if we wanted to. The idea is to
maintain the rest of the properties RR3 and be able to cordon off a smaller
section with that house on it to RR1. Hearing no other comments Commissioner
Morse closed the Public Hearing. Commissioner Morse made a MOTION that we
delay this for 30 days so that the applicant can get back with the planning
department, and so everybody's on the same page of what we're doing,
Commissioner White seconded. Passed Unanimous. Ms. Anna Vickers, Planning
Manager stated that they apologize for the confusion. There are spots on the
application that vary from the site plan. That being said, if we just
re-advertise it as it is right now and do a public notice for your next
hearing, we can easily solve this situation. Thirty days is all we can
advertise for.
PUBLIC COMMENTS ON REGULAR, CONSENT AND FILED AGENDA ITEMS Hearing no comments Commissioner Morse continued the Board Meeting.
FINANCE Notice of Public Hearings for the Preliminary Budget Proposals for FY26-27 and Budget Hearing Schedule Setting the Public Hearings for Monday June 22, 2026, at 9:00 a.m. and Continue Hearing through 5:00 p.m. Wednesday June 24, 2026, in Room 309 of the John V. Ostlund Building. Commissioner Waters made a MOTION to approve the Notice of Public Hearing for Preliminary Budget Proposals for FY26-27, Commissioner White seconded. Passed Unanimous.
CLAIMS Batches 26-157, 26-158, 26-159, 26-160, 26-161 and 26-162. Commissioner White made a MOTION to approve the Claims, Commissioner Waters seconded. Passed Unanimous.
CONSENT AGENDA 1. CLERK AND RECORDER Release of Restriction on the Construction of Structures on Lots 3 and 4 Barber Farm Subdivision. 2. COMMISSIONERS A.) Board Openings City/County Planning District 3,4,5 &7, Broadview Cemetery, Blue Creek Fire Service Area, Laurel Fire District 5 & 7, Consolidated Zoning Commission, Lockwood Pedestrian Safety District Advisory Board, Lockwood TEDD. B.) PILT Request Ostlund Building Dedication Ceremony. C.) Letter to Anna Vickers Review of Special Zoning District Petition. 3. FINANCE A.) Alcohol Earmark Funds. B.) Bond for Lost Warrant. C.) Change Order #2 Terracon Ostlund Building. D.) Finance Contract Environmental Contractors LLC Courthouse Asbestos Abatement. E.) MOU between Yellowstone County and City of Billings for 2025 Justice Assistance Granat. 4. SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS School Mills after Recertified Taxable Values. 5. PUBLIC WORKS A.) Agreement for the Use of Salvaged Milled Materials Shiloh Road. B.) Contract with Performance Engineering Junk Vehicle Site Design. C.) MOU Worden-Ballantine Water Sewer District. D.) 2026 County Crack Seal Project Addendum 1. E.) IFB - 2026 Dust Suppressant Transport & Distribution on Various Gravel Roads in Yellowstone County. 6. TREASURER Cancellation of Delinquent Property Taxes Older than Five Years. 7. HUMAN RESOURCES PERSONNEL ACTION REPORTS Detention Office 1 Appointment, 1 Termination; Sheriffs Office 1 Appointment, 1 Salary & Other.
FILE ITEMS 1. AUDITOR Payroll Audit from May 1 May 15, 2026. 2. COMMISSIONERS Board Minutes Heights Water District April & May 2026. 3. HUMAN RESOURCES May 1 May 15 Payroll Audit. 4. PUBLIC WORKS A.) Contract with Sanbell. B.) Contract with Natures Beauty. Commissioner Waters made a MOTION to approve the Consent Agenda and place the File Items to file, Commissioner White seconded. Passed Unanimous.
PUBLIC COMMENTS ON COUNTY BUSINESS Hearing no comments Commissioner Morse adjourned the meeting at 9:30 a.m.
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