Post by Logan on May 11, 2016 9:37:18 GMT -6
Governor candidate Gianforte sued state in 2009 over access to river
Gov. Steve Bullock and Democratic organizers took aim at Republican gubernatorial candidate Greg Gianforte on Monday after an anonymous liberal blog surfaced a 2009 lawsuit filed by a family-owned company to kill a public access easement in Bozeman.
East Gallatin LLC sued Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks in May 2009 to remove an easement that provided public access along the East Gallatin River, arguing that users were damaging adjacent land, the original 1993 agreement by a previous owner was invalid and that the public had sufficient access via two other nearby sites. The complaint was filed to create a foothold for a case, but the papers were never served to the agency.
The dispute was resolved after a department visit to the site in July 2009 led to trail and fence upgrades that did a better job keeping users off the rest of the Gianforte property and the agency updated records on the easement boundaries, according to state documents requested by the State Bureau.
Stream access
The incident provided fodder for Democrats who sought to extend their narrative that Gianforte is a wealthy transplant who won’t look out for the average Montanan, while highlighting Bullock’s work to strengthen the state’s stream access laws.
Read more: billingsgazette.com/news/government-and-politics/governor-candidate-gianforte-sued-state-in-over-access-to-river/article_951b0234-304c-5570-b90e-83e92fb8c976.html
Gov. Steve Bullock and Democratic organizers took aim at Republican gubernatorial candidate Greg Gianforte on Monday after an anonymous liberal blog surfaced a 2009 lawsuit filed by a family-owned company to kill a public access easement in Bozeman.
East Gallatin LLC sued Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks in May 2009 to remove an easement that provided public access along the East Gallatin River, arguing that users were damaging adjacent land, the original 1993 agreement by a previous owner was invalid and that the public had sufficient access via two other nearby sites. The complaint was filed to create a foothold for a case, but the papers were never served to the agency.
The dispute was resolved after a department visit to the site in July 2009 led to trail and fence upgrades that did a better job keeping users off the rest of the Gianforte property and the agency updated records on the easement boundaries, according to state documents requested by the State Bureau.
Stream access
The incident provided fodder for Democrats who sought to extend their narrative that Gianforte is a wealthy transplant who won’t look out for the average Montanan, while highlighting Bullock’s work to strengthen the state’s stream access laws.
Read more: billingsgazette.com/news/government-and-politics/governor-candidate-gianforte-sued-state-in-over-access-to-river/article_951b0234-304c-5570-b90e-83e92fb8c976.html