GLACIER NATIONAL PARK - A home being built on private land within Glacier National Park in the Apgar area has drawn quite a bit of attention, and now, it will be torn down.
The home was built directly on the stream bank of McDonald Creek. It's private property within the park boundary that has been grandfathered since before the park's creation.
The Flathead Conservation District received 17 complaints about the building's location and the possibility they did not file for a 310-law permit. The permit is required for any work with the potential to impact the bed or banks of perennial flowing streams in Montana.
"And so the intention of the law is to preserve the stream bed and banks in as close to their natural condition as possible. That's because the stream bed and banks provide such important services and habitat. The intent of the law is to preserve those really important natural functions," said Flathead Conservation District Resource Conservationist Samantha Tappenbeck.
At a Conservation District board meeting on March 13, 2023,, it was decided that no one applied for the free 310-law permit for the location.
“So you know, if they had applied, then I can't speculate on whether or not their application would have been approved or denied, but they did not apply prior to doing that work,” said Tappenbeck.
The building has been ordered to be removed and the area remediated after the creek recedes from the high-water point, but before Nov. 1, 2023.
