In a surprising twist, a federal judge has ruled in favor of a California couple fighting orders to destroy their stunning, half-built cabin within a Montana national park, allowing them to keep the property intact.
John and Stacy Ambler’s half-built abyss, located on a 2,300-square-foot slab of land near McDonald Creek in Glacier National Park, has been at risk of demolition ever since several residents filed complaints with the Flathead Conservation District (FCD), SFGate reported.
After several back-and-forth lawsuits, federal judge Kathleen DeSoto ruled in favor of the San Diego couple in February, asserting that the FCD has no jurisdiction over the property, as it is located within a national park and therefore, falls under federal jurisdiction.
However, in the latest chapter of the ongoing battle, both the FCD and Friends of Montana Streams and Rivers have filed an appeal, arguing that they have a case to reverse the judge’s decision.
‘Flathead Conservation District has a statutory duty to protect the natural resources within our district,’ Samantha Tappenbeck, a district resource conservationist, told SFGate.
‘So, the Flathead Conservation District Board of Supervisors decided to appeal the decision in service to the constituents of our district, and because the board felt that there were appealable issues.’
The Amblers’ began building their three-story, lush Montana home in late 2022 and early 2023, where they laid a concrete retaining wall into the steambank and installed rock footers into the bank to build a deck.
Yet the couple’s construction project kickstarted local drama, as residents of the West Glacier area complained that the home was clearly visible to both park visitors and neighbors alike, the Flathead Beacon reported.
John and Stacy Ambler’s (pictured) half-built abyss, located on a 2,300-square-foot piece of land near McDonald Creek in Glacier National Park, has been at risk of demolition after several residents filed complaints with the Flathead Conservation District (FCD)
In a surprising twist, a federal judge has ruled in favor of a California couple fighting orders from two Montana organizations to destroy their stunning cabin, allowing them to keep the property intact
After several back-and-forth lawsuits, federal judge Kathleen DeSoto ruled in favor of the San Diego couple in February, asserting that the FCD has no jurisdiction over the property, as it is located within a national park and therefore, falls under federal jurisdiction
The complaints caught the attention of the FCD, who then preformed an onsite inspection of the Ambler home.
Following the inspection, the district claimed that the couple had violated the state’s Natural Steambed and Land Preservation Act (NSLPA), better known as the 310 law.
Their reasoning was based on the belief that the home had been illegally constructed without any of the necessary permits.
The 310 law states that any private individual or entity proposing work in or near a stream that ‘physically alters or modifies the bed or immediate banks of a perennial-flowing stream’ must obtain approved permits from the local conservation district, the Flathead Beacon reported.
However, the couple claim they were given permission by Flathead County’s Planning Office, which told them they could do ‘whatever they wanted with the land without restriction’ as the land is in an un-zoned area, according to Hungry Horse News.
The Park Service, a federal organization, did allow the Amblers to connect to the Apgar water and sewer systems.
Nevertheless, the District’s Board of Supervisors ultimately ruled that the couple must tear down the half-built home and repair the steambed before April 1, 2024.
However, the couple instead filed lawsuits in both state and federal courts, arguing that the District abused its authority.
Both the FCD and Friends of Montana Streams and Rivers have filed an appeal, arguing that they have a case to reverse the judge’s decision
The Amblers’ began building their three-story, lush Montana home in late 2022 and early 2023, where they laid a concrete retaining wall into the steambank and installed rock footers into the bank to build a deck
The couple’s construction project kickstarted local drama, as residents of the West Glacier area complained that the home was clearly visible to both park visitors and neighbors alike which prompted an onsite inspection conducted by the FCD
The California natives don’t believe the District has any jurisdiction over their land and property because it’s located inside the national park and is on an inholding, which is private land that predates the creations of the park in 1910.
They also claim the property is apart of Apgar, a small, private village in the park that was created in 1908.
The District accused the Amblers’ of trying to find the gray area, as they claimed Montana has no jurisdiction over the plot of land because it’s inside a national park, which is federally protected, but also claimed the feds don’t have access because it’s on private land.
However, the District claimed that state and local laws still pertain to private land, regardless of where it is located, including in Glacier National Park.
The couple, however, argued Montana gave the rights to the land to the US when they handed over the land, which ‘cedes jurisdiction,’ their lawyer Trent Baker said, according to Hungry Horse News.
The core of the organization’s arguments is that the home’s location within the boundaries of Glacier National Park does not exempt it from adhering to Montana’s state laws, particularly the Montana Natural Streambed and Land Protection Act (NSLPA).
On the contrary, the couple argued that the Steambed Act was not passed until 1976, and therefore Montana’s state laws could not be recognized federally, according to SFGate.
The couple also said that the national park is the entity to govern private inholdings, stating that the FCD ‘cannot unilaterally reassert jurisdiction over lands to which the State of Montana long ago ceded jurisdiction to the United States,’ Flathead Beacon reported.
Following the inspection, the district, which enforces the state’s Natural Steambed and Land Preservation Act (NSLPA), or better known as the 310 law, stated that the couple had violated the law – their reason being the home illegally being constructed without any of the necessary permits
The San Diego couple believes the District lacks jurisdiction over their land and property because it’s located inside the national park and is on an inholding – which is private land that predates the creations of the park in 1910 – and instead filed lawsuits in both state and federal courts
Samantha Tappenbeck, a district resource conservationist, told SFGate in regards to the appeal: ‘Flathead Conservation District has a statutory duty to protect the natural resources within our district’
In Desoto’s order, she wrote that the arguments ‘go beyond the scope of the sole claim asserted in the complaint… that FCD lacks jurisdiction over the Ambler property, and that the Streambed Act does not apply’
‘The only issue in this case is federal versus state jurisdiction over the Amblers’ property,’ Trent Baker, the pair’s attorney, wrote in the summary judgement, according to the outlet.
In Desoto’s order, she wrote that the arguments ‘go beyond the scope of the sole claim asserted in the complaint… that FCD lacks jurisdiction over the Ambler property, and that the Streambed Act does not apply.’
For the appeals to proceed in court, attorneys from both organizations must submit their briefs by May 28.
Officials of Glacier National Park have previously said they were working with the US Department of the Interior attorneys to determine whether they will join the suit, SFGate reported.
The Amblers’ did not immediately respond to DailyMail.com for comment.
