Gallatin National Forest

Recreation Residences

Recreation Residences

Recreation Residences are privately owned summer cabins, on National Forest land, authorized by special use permits that last 20 years. Permit Holders pay an annual fee for their permit. Some of these recreation residences date back to the early 1900’s and represent a time when Americans were being encouraged to enjoy the healthful benefits of a vacation in the National Forests. Because of their age and architecture, many of these cabins are eligible for the National Register of Historic Places. Currently the Gallatin National Forest has 198 permitted recreation residences, which is the greatest number of all Northern Region National Forests. Nationally, there are over 14,000 permitted Recreation Residences on National Forest lands.

This webpage is designed to provide information for the permit Holders, as well as anyone who may be interested in issues regarding these special use permits.

INFORMATION FOR PERMIT HOLDERS

Reissuance Process (all permits expire Dec 31, 2008)

• DRAFT Operation and Maintenance Plan (6-27-2008) for all Permits effective as of Jan 1, 2009. Permit holders may provide input through August 8, 2008.


• DRAFT Forest Service Handbook Supplement for the Administration of Recreation Residence Permits on the Gallatin National Forest (6-27-2008) Permit holders may provide input through August 8, 2008.



• Press Release (7-9-2007) announced the start of the analysis for reissuance determination.


• Scoping Information (7-1-2007) provided comment opportunity and notification of the analysis process to determine continuance (reissuance of 20 year permits) of the currently existing recreation residence special use permits.


• Example of a Recreation Residence Special Use Permit

Forms

• Request to Modify the Permitted Lot or Improvements


• Incidental Sub-Lease Approval Form


• Form 2700-3a: Holder Initiated Revocation of Existing Authorization / Request for a Special Use Permit or Term Special Use Permit


• Forest Service Inspection of Recreation Residence Lot

Appraisal Process and Information

• Cabin Users Fee Fairness Act (CUFFA)


• Final Rules and Directives of CUFFA (2.9 MB)


• Appraisals in 2007: Questions and Answers


• Basic Specifications for the Appraisal of Recreation Residence Lots

References

• Forest Service Directives (FS Handbook and Manual Direction)


• Recreational Residence Historic Contexts for Eight National Forests in USDA-Region 1 (5.4 MB) provides very interesting information about the history, development, design and architectural characteristics of recreation residences unique to the Northern Region.


• Cost Recovery Press Release


• Federal Register: Cost Recovery, February 21, 2006 Cost Recovery is legislation which requires Holders of Special Use Permits, who request specific administrative approvals, actions or analysis on their Recreation Residence Permits that would require more than 50 hours of Forest Service time to pay a fee. An example of this might be a request from a Permit Holder to alter or reconstruct their cabin that may be eligible for the National Register of Historic Places, especially where in-depth consultation and documentation by the Forest Service with the State Historic Preservation Officer is required. Another example might be where a Permit Holder requests permission to build a septic drain field in a location where water quality and other resource concerns require more than 50 hours of environmental analysis to determine whether to grant approval.


• Standards for Vehicle Bridges that Access Recreation Residences (5-21-2008)


• Guidelines for Roads Maintained by Recreation Residence Permit Holders


• Hebgen Lake Shoreline Management Plan


• Family Trusts and Estate Planning for Recreation Residences


• Information on Family Trusts for Recreation Residences


• “Estate Planning with a Permitted Cabin in Mind” (National Forest Homeowners Association)

Informative Websites

• Firewise


• National Forest Homeowners Association


• Gallatin Canyon Homeowners Association


• Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks website contains information about boating safety, boating rules, algae blooms, fishing, aquatic nuisance species and other information pertinent for recreation residences near Hebgen Lake.

Examples of References From Other Forest Service Regions and Forests

• (California) Forest Service Region 5: Supplement to the Forest Service Handbook: Administration of Recreation Residences


• (California) Clarification Letter to FS Region 5 Forest Supervisors regarding the Recreation Residence Supplement to the Forest Service Handbook


• (Wyoming) Shoshone National Forest Management Standards for Recreation Residences


• Idaho Panhandle National Forest Recreation Residences



• Photo gallery of permit holder submissions.