NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING
The Three Forks City Council will hold a public hearing on May 14, 2024, to discuss and decide on the following:
· Continued Review and Edits to the Draft Capital Improvements Plan (CIP) Including Staff, Elected Officials’ and Public’s Input on Prioritization of Potential Projects Listed in Each Infrastructure Category.
· Decision to Send a Letter to the Gallatin County Commission asking them to Adopt the City of Three Forks’ 2022 Growth Policy.
The working draft CIP and drafted letter are available below.
Any and all feedback is essential to good government, and we encourage you attend or submit comment. Written and verbal comment will be accepted at the hearing, or may be submitted via email to cturner@threeforksmontana.us or ksmith@threeforksmontana.us prior to the hearing (deadline of 5PM on 5/14/2024).
The hearing will be held at City Hall, 206 Main Street, Three Forks, Montana at 6:00PM. Please contact the City Office at (406) 285-3431 for any questions.
Capital Improvement Plan & Impact Fee Project
The City in the midst of defining a new Capital Improvement Plan (CIP). The CIP would then define what projects are needed due to growth or capacity changes. Projects due to growth can have an impact fee set in order to meet that new growths’ requirement.
Check out our project-specific page explaining more on CIP and Impact Fees.
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capital improvements plan PUBLIC HEARINGs
The Three Forks City Council will held a public hearing on April 9, 2024, to Review the Draft Capital Improvements Plan (CIP) Including Staff, Elected Officials’ and Public’s Input on Prioritization of Potential Projects Listed in Each Infrastructure Category. The working draft CIP is available here.
Any and all feedback is essential to a good draft! Written and verbal comment will be accepted at the hearing, or may be submitted via email to cturner@threeforksmontana.us or ksmith@threeforksmontana.us prior to the hearing (deadline of 5PM on 4/9/2024).
The Council continued the discussion until 4/23/2024 at 6PM if anyone from the public wishes to comment on the projects, propose/eliminate a project, and to make the best draft possible.
At that hearing on 4/23, the Council provided more input and asked for public comment, and then directed staff to incorporate all comments and provide a clean draft at the 6/11/2024 meeting.
Public comment is still accepted - so feel free to attend that meeting or submit comments via email.
The hearings are held at City Hall, 206 Main Street, Three Forks, Montana at 6:00PM. Please contact the City Office at (406) 285-3431 for any questions.
more public hearings:
NOTICE is hereby given of a PUBLIC HEARING to be held before the Three Forks Zoning and Planning Board on Thursday, May 16, 2024, at 7:00 P.M. in the City Office, 206 Main Street, Three Forks, Montana.
Ken Landgaard with Christopher Trent and Charles Trent have made an application for a Conditional Use Permit for the property located at Block 28, Lots 3,4,5 & 6, of the Three Forks Original Townsite, will be known as 410 S. Main Street. Said request is for approval to build 2 buildings, each containing 4 residential units, within the Central Business District designation.
The CITY COUNCIL will conduct a PUBLIC HEARING on Tuesday, May 14, 2024, at 6:00 P.M., and act on the recommendation of the Zoning & Planning Board for Kenneth Gibson and Barrett Snyder for a Multi-Family Residential Triplex for Property Located at Lots 1 and 2, Block 4, Northwest Townsite, Commonly Known as 623 E. Neal Street.
At each PUBLIC HEARING, TESTIMONY will be taken in support of and in opposition to this request. Written testimony is also acceptable and may be sent to PO Box 187, Three Forks, MT 59752 or ksmith@threeforksmontana.us.
The complete application and proposed site plan for this request may be reviewed below. For questions concerning this request, contact Kelly Smith, City Zoning Official (phone 285-3431). (Attendance via Zoom will be offered. Contact City Hall for Meeting ID.)
“Small acts, when multiplied by millions of people, can transform the world.”
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City of Three Forks Seeks Volunteers for Citizen Advisory Board Vacancies
The City advertises “vacancies” for all boards as terms expire, providing for the opportunity for those who would like to “toss their hat in the ring” to apply, as well as we send a letter asking the current board member if they wish to be reconsidered for another term.
Three Forks Zoning & Planning Board has one seat available for residents of the 1-mile jurisdiction boundary (potential growth area just outside of city limits). Do you live adjacent to the city limits and are interested in how we grow as the city limits expand? If so, this is the board for you!! This is a seven-member board, serving staggered 3-year terms. The purpose of the Board is to consider applications to the Zoning ordinances which are conditional, or Planned Unit Developments, but also make recommendations to the Growth Policy update and zoning ordinances. Do you want a say in how Three Forks grows and where? This is your chance! The appointment is filling the remainder of a three year term, expiring on December 31, 2024. This board only meets monthly as applications are received (historically 10 times/year).
Board of Adjustments, Appeals & Variances has one seat due to a resignation. This is a five-member board, serving staggered 3-year terms. The purpose of the board is to consider variances to the Zoning ordinances. The board may also hear and decide appeals of any zoning ordinance adopted, or where it is alleged there is error in any order, requirement, decision, or determination made by an administrative official of the enforcement of the Zoning Chapter. You can read more in Title 11, Chapter 18 of the Three Forks Municipal Code. This board meets only if applications are received, historically 1-3 times/year.
What is the Local Government Review election?
Established as part of the 1972 Constitution, the Local Government Review election is to be held by each city and county government every 10 years. Three Forks will be holding an election during the June primary asking our voters whether or not you wish to conduct a local government review and establish a study commission to do so.
Three Forks passed a resolution calling for the election at its February 13, 2024 meeting. The Council set that three people will comprise Study Commission who would run for election on the November ballot, and the budget if the people elect to review our form of government was set at $5,000.
You can learn more here.
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Three Forks Community Library—Basement Office Space for Rent
The basement of the Library is currently available for use as office space, preferable to one tenant but could be individual offices with shared common and bathroom spaces.
Available 2/1/2024
$1,600/month—Approximately 800 square feet. 4 private offices and a large common area which would be used a conference or break area. The basement has a private entrance, paved parking, and a kitchenette. Rent includes water, sewer, gas/electric, Internet, trash and snow removal.
Contact Jaime Ewan at 406-285-3747
City Reminder…
The City of Three Forks wants to remind you to familiarize yourself with our many ordinances if you live inside city limits. Here are a few about lawns, weeds, trees and parking… (hyperlinks in the Ordinance references below)
Ordinance # 5-5-1 & 2 states that vegetation (lawns & weeds) must be kept below 6 inches, including your alley and boulevard area.
Ordinance # 5-7-3 states that tree branches must have a 7-foot clearance over sidewalks and street parking areas, 14-foot clearance over any street driving area and alleyway.
Ordinance # 7-2-5 states that vehicles and trailers parked on city streets must be facing the flow of traffic and have current registration (among many other rules). All vehicles and trailers must be moved to a new parking spot every 72 hours to verify the right-of-way is not being used for storage.
Read more of the city ordinances above by hovering over online documents then click on ordinances.
Follow us on Facebook for reminders and updates to our city ordinances. Call us with any questions.
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Did you know you may be in the 1% chance of flooding based on FEMA's Flood Insurance Rate Map? Check out our floodplain page to learn more about the regulations on flood-proofing, and how you can best prepare in the event of a flood.
Madison-Ruby-Jefferson River Watersheds Flood Maps Update
Madison, Jefferson, Gallatin, and Broadwater Counties have been working with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC) to produce new floodplain maps for portions of the Madison, Ruby, Jefferson, Beaverhead and South Boulder Rivers, and Mill and Indian Creeks.
View Draft Maps Here
(Image of existing Jefferson floodplain overlay in Three Forks. *Does not include the Madison River Floodplain.)
(Image of proposed new maps overlaying Three Forks - floodWAY penetrates within the city limits on the west side of town)
(Image of what the Jefferson River Floodplain would look like if the mitigation channel were constructed in this location. *Please note this does not include any mapping of the Madison River Floodplain.)
Jefferson Floodplain Mitigation Project
The City of Three Forks submitted funding applications to FEMA in January 2022 for the purposes of funding a flood mitigation project to reduce flood risk from the Jefferson River. The proposed mitigation is a grass-lined conveyance channel and culvert crossing improvement project that will intercept flood waters west of town and divert them back to the Jefferson River before ever reaching the city.
The conveyance channel would be approximately 8,000 lineal feet. Channel dimensions are anticipated to be 100-feet wide, 5-feet deep, with 3:1 side slopes. The project will include a culvert crossing structure to carry water underneath MT state highway 2 before terminating into a natural side channel of the Jefferson River. The project cost is estimated at $5.5 million.
The City learned that FEMA has selected Three Forks for final review of a Flood Mitigation Assistance (FMA) grant at 75% of the total project cost.
The remaining 25% will be funded through a Special Improvement District (SID). The SID represents an area in which landowners would be assessed to fund improvements that benefit the district, and the maintenance thereof. Landowners have the opportunity to protest the creation of this district during the protest period. A Notice of Intent to Create was first published on October 4, 2022, beginning the 17-day protest period. (Protest period began 10/4/2022, the date of first publication in a newspaper of general circulation within Gallatin County. Three Forks also advertised in the Bozeman Daily Chronicle, Belgrade News, and the Three Forks Voice. Protest period ended on 10/21/2022 at 5PM.)
public hearings
Public hearings have been held on 9/27/2022 and 10/25/2022 to Create Special Improvement District #34 “Jefferson River Floodplain Mitigation Project & Maintenance”. Zero written protests were received, and the Council approved the creation of this SID at its 10/25/2022 meeting.
next steps
We have sent the District details to the Treasurer’s office to be on the 2023 tax rolls.
We also have met with the affected landowners where the proposed channel would be located, and will work soon on the environmental and historical assessment surveys.