Commissioners deny Elk River Road traffic restriction after neighbors and developer comment

The Yellowstone County Board of County Commissioners on March 7 voted to deny Resolution/Ordinance 23-14, which would have restricted Elk River Road to local traffic. The action followed a public hearing and testimony from neighbors and a representative of K Construction.

At the hearing, Bridal Kirschman, who lives at 3598 Elk River Road, said she remained "still opposed" to the proposal. Justin Harkins of the Crowley Fleck law firm, representing K Construction, told the board the neighbors' primary concern appeared to be vehicle speed and "that's an enforcement issue," not a matter for road classification. "There are ways to address that problem short of turning this into essentially a private road," Harkins said.

After hearing public comment the board moved to deny the ordinance. The motion to deny was made and seconded and the board recorded the vote by voice; the motion carried.

The chair thanked neighbors and the developer for meeting and working toward a local solution, and the board noted the matter appears to have a community-led solution in progress rather than requiring road reclassification.

The denial means the proposed local-traffic restriction for Elk River Road will not be adopted at this time. Residents and the developer indicated they will continue to coordinate on mitigation options, including enforcement and traffic-calming measures.