MISSOULA — Missoula County on Tuesday adopted a permit and fee structure for various programs at Marshall Mountain Park and other land under the county's parks and trails system.
Nicholas Zanetos, the county's parks and trails administrator, said the fees are based off a range of uses, from large events to educational programs. The permits are similar to those in place at the Missoula County Fairgrounds.
“We're trying to keep it as consistent as possible for the public, so no matter what space you're looking at, you're generally following the same type of procedure,” said Zanetos. “We also took a lot from the city's event permit structure they're doing at Marshall Mountain and on their conservation land as well.”
As adopted, the fees address three primary categories including one-time special events, seasonal events that reoccur, and youth sports.
That latter includes a $250 damage deposit and is broken down into two seasons. It also sets a number of guidelines, from the length and number of practices to the number of participants.
“This is mainly applicable to Marshall but any field sites that we have on the parks and trails side,” said Zanetos.
One-time special events also include a damage deposit based on the size of the event. But it also includes a potential fee adjustment.
Zanetos said the county may waive fees for educational events or increase fees for events that require snow removal, or the time of other county staff.
“We try to have a fee structure that has add-ons or deductions to make it as flexible as possible,” he said.
In recent years, the county has made vast improvements to the Missoula County Fairgrounds and, in partnership with the city, it acquired Marshall Mountain to bring it into public ownership.
Along the way, the county also launched a new Lands, Culture and Recreation Department to oversee Marshall Mountain, Larchmont Golf Course and county open space.
Under the new structure, the county also set fees for seasonal events that reoccur. Zanetos said they're based primarily on the number of participants and the number of times the event takes place.
“It's meant to have the fees tiered toward the overall impact of the site,” said Zanetos. “Each event we find very different, so we'd like to have as much flexibility as possible.”
Commissioners adopted the fees unanimously on Tuesday.
“We'll be revisiting this to see how well this works over time,” said Commissioner Josh Slotnick. “It can adjust if things on the ground change.”
