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DRAFT RESOLUTION NUMBER A RESOLUTION OF THE MISSOULA CITY COUNCIL TO EXPEND $445,000 OF 2006 OPEN SPACE BOND PROCEEDS, TO CONTRIBUTE TOWARDS THE PURCHASE OF A CONSERVATION EASEMENT TO BE HELD BY FIVE VALLEYS LAND TRUST ON 304 ACRES IN THE NORTH HILLS NORTH OF THE LANDFILL. WHEREAS, the City of Missoula has adopted the Missoula Urban Area Open Space Plan 2006 Update (“Open Space Plan”), which envisions an open space system for the greater Missoula area; and WHEREAS, a vote of Missoula County citizens in November 2006 authorized the Missoula County Commissioners to issue $10 million dollars of Open Space Bonds to acquire open space land, $5,000,000 of which is allocated for lands in or near the City, as guided by the Open Space Plan; and WHEREAS, the Open Space Plan lists the North Hills as a cornerstone element of Missoula’s open space system and encourages the preservation of land in their natural ecological state as well as wildlife habitat and rare and unique plant communities; and WHEREAS, the North Hills property owned by Allied Waste Systems (AWS) and formerly known as the Ryan family ranch, consisting of approximately 304 acres, is bordered on the south side by City Open Space known as the Schilling property, and thus the purchase will provide further continuity and consolidation of open space; and WHEREAS, the November 2006 open space bond election ballot lists purchasing lands that provide open space and scenic landscapes and protecting wildlife habitat as two of the allowed types of bond expenditures; and WHEREAS, the property consists predominately of open grasslands with a mix of woody draws that provide good wildlife habitat for elk, mule deer, black bear, various small mammals, and numerous migratory song birds and raptors; and WHEREAS, the property's open rolling hills are visible from the large majority of all neighborhoods in Missoula, which means there is tremendous scenic viewshed value; and WHEREAS, the property has been part of a working sheep ranch for decades and has over 120 acres of Soils of Local Importance; and WHEREAS, AWS has committed to working with the City in the future for granting a public trail easement on the property when a lifetime grazing lease on the City's 120 acre Schilling parcel located adjacent and to the south of the AWS parcel has expired. The ---PAGE BREAK--- conservation values of the subject property are very high, and thus AWS, FVLT, and the City will carefully plan the access in order to not adversely impact those values; and WHEREAS, the property meets four out of the seven types of lands listed by the 2006 Open Space bond: protecting wildlife habitat; providing open space and scenic landscapes, managing for growth, and conserving working farms and ranches; and WHEREAS, Fish, Wildlife, & Parks, the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, and Bert Lindler, a resident of the Grant Creek area, all sent letters regarding their support for the City's purchase of the property; and WHEREAS, the Open Space Advisory Committee met on February 11, 2010 and unanimously recommended approval of contributing $445,000 towards the purchase of the conservation easement in partnership with FVLT and AWS; and WHEREAS FVLT will be contributing $50,000 from its funds to help purchase the conservation easement, and AWS is donating approximately 71% of the value of the easement; NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Missoula City Council appropriates $445,000 of the 2006 Open Space Bond proceeds towards the purchase of a conservation easement on 304 acres of property in the North Hills in partnership with the landowner Allied Waste Systems and Five Valleys Land Trust; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Missoula City Council thanks Allied Waste Systems for their generous contribution towards preserving Missoula’s open spaces and thanks to Five Valleys Land Trust for their dedicated work on making this project happen. PASSED AND ADOPTED this day of April, 2010. ATTEST: APPROVED: Martha L. Rehbein John Engen City Clerk Mayor (SEAL)