Adoption of land use plan sans crane habitat west of town Public Comment from Darcy Thomas, Flathead Audubon Society Aimee Brunckhorst
From: Darcy Thomas <darcy@flatheadaudubon.org>
Sent: Wednesday, April 8, 2026 4:50 PM
To: Kalispell Meetings Public Comment
Subject: EXTERNAL Adoption of land use plan sans crane habitat west of town
Hello Mayor Hunter and City Council members,
As a representative of Flathead Audubon Society (FAS) I would like to thank you for the recent
vote on the land use plan in accordance with the Montana Land Use Planning Act. I know it
was not an easy vote and not everyone agreed. FAS has a vested interest in the conservation of
birds and the places in which they live so, from our perspective, this is a big win and we could
not be more happy. We agreed with Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks that the area where the
Sandhill Cranes stage in the west valley during migration is an area of concern and I applaud
decisions to save areas of our valley that certain species depend upon. It is truly a unique area.
I once watched a Great Gray Owl in the area and often see several families of Northern Harrier
hunting the fields. I could go on and on but the point of this letter is primarily to thank you for
the hard decisions you make.
Also, I would love to invite you to a field trip to the West Valley Ponds to view the Sandhill
Crane migration this coming fall. They stage in great numbers by the end of September and
early October. When we get closer to that time of year I will contact you and hopefully we can
watch the spectacular event together.
Best regards,
Darcy Thomas, President
Flathead Audubon Society