Grant will help demolition of flood damaged Red Lodge inn

Red Lodge flooding.

Debris is removed from in front of a house in Red Lodge on Thursday.

Water and debris surround a destroyed home on Broadway Avenue in Red Lodge on Tuesday as historic flooding devastates the town and the region.

Water fills the streets of Broadway Avenue and floods homes in Red Lodge on Monday morning as flooding devastates the town and surrounding regions.

A home on Broadway Avenue in Red Lodge is flooded as Rock Creek reaches historic highs on June 13.

Early in the morning of June 13 last year, Red Lodge's Rocky Fork Inn was nearly swept into the flooding Rock Creek.

The water came fast and hard, ripping through the creek-side inn's walls, gouging out the building from within. Windows were shattered and debris was flung everywhere. When the river finally receded, the inn was filled with stones, mud and tree branches. It was destroyed and has been vacant and crumbling ever since.

Just shy of one year after historic flooding hit Red Lodge, a former residence on Broadwater Avenue has plans to be turned into a park.

Nearly a full year later, Red Lodge city officials plan to buy the ruined inn and demolish it, converting the riverfront property into a park. But, it all depends on combining separate federal grants that take months to process.

One grant from the Environmental Protection Agency for evaluating damaged property and cleanup is already in the bag.

The other, from the Federal Emergency Management Agency for buying the approximately $1.7 million property from the owners, isn't.

A former bed and breakfast located on Broadway Avenue in Red Lodge is severely damaged as extreme flooding devastates the region.

The current plan is to use the EPA grants for a brownfield assessment, in which Beartooth Resource Conservations and Development Area, Inc. of Joliet will be paid to check land for toxins and create an outline for cleanup.

The money comes from a larger, sweeping grant of $460,000 that will be used to assess several Montana locations impacted by last year's flood. Because Rocky Fork Inn is only one location in the pool of money, the exact amount Red Lodge will receive is still in the air.

Courtney Long is the city's planning director and spearhead of Rocky Fork Inn's restoration project. She said it’ll be enough to get the ball rolling.

"We’re actually further ahead in the process than we expected," Long said. "Grants take months…Full recovery takes years."

After an assessment and a preliminary cleanup, Long said the city will use a FEMA grant to purchase the Inn's property and turn it into a park — which depends on the FEMA grant.

FEMA grants are only accessible within a year of a declared emergency, Long explained.

Because Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte declared the record southern Montana floods a disaster on June 14, 2022, anyone who wants to use FEMA funds must apply by June 14, 2023, she said.

That's just one week away.

A home on Broadway Avenue in Red Lodge is flooded as Rock Creek reaches historic highs on June 13.

"That is, unless the state applies to extend the deadline," Long said, "which they probably will if they haven't already."

If the money were given, the city would split the Inn's cost 25/75 with FEMA. The Inn itself currently has almost no value, but FEMA requires the city to repay the owners what the property was worth before the disaster.

Even if only paying a quarter of the bill, Long said the city doesn't have the budget to bite the whole price tag. She said they’d have to pull from other state funds to finish the deal.

"We’d make it work," Long said. "There are a lot of moving parts, but the main goal is to help the owners get a fair deal."

Milton Bastian owns the property, but his son Rod Bastian has been representing the family.

"I’m not the lead of the project," Bastian said, "but I’ve been doing what I can to help."

While the city has been making plans with multiple property owners, the Bastians’ project has gone the farthest, Long said. The other owners considering a project can pull out at any time.

The Bastians are all in, Milton Bastian said.

"We haven't considered any other options at this time," he said.

As of now, it comes down to the FEMA grant, and Long said they may not hear back for weeks.

"That's just how these things work," Long said. "From my place as a planning director, things are moving fast. But I don't blame others for not feeling the same. It's a matter of perspective."

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A video captured by Beartooth Slingshot Rentals captures devastating aerial footage of the flood roaring through the Red Lodge area.