A group of pilots are fighting to preserve a private airstrip near Lakeside, arguing in a lawsuit that its owners have no right to remove the runway.

TAL & PGL, LLC, is the registered owner of the airstrip near the Eagle’s Crest neighborhood, according to Federal Aviation Administration records. Two years ago, the company’s owners, Terry and Patrick Leiser, agreed to sell 1,700 acres of land — including a section of the runway — to Discovery Land Company. 

Discovery is behind plans to build a members-only resort, dubbed Flathead Lake Club, adjacent to Eagle’s Crest. The development is expected to feature a new golf course, spa, fitness center and 359 residential lots.  

In the buy-sell agreement, Discovery added a requirement to remove the airstrip. Vice President Jeremy Pfile said its proximity poses an unacceptable safety risk to residential development. 

“A private airstrip in a mountainous area, unregulated by the [Federal Aviation Administration], presents serious safety concerns,” Pfile said in an email to the Daily Inter Lake. 

The runway has painted markings as required by the Federal Aviation Administration. It also has a precision path approach indicator that provides vertical guidance to arriving aircraft.  

Runway repairs, painted markings and the indicators were paid for by the Eagle’s Crest Homeowners Association. An air hangar was also constructed next to the runway. 

A group of Eagle’s Crest property owners filed suit in Flathead County District Court against TAL & PGL, LLC, in April 2024, arguing they have a legal right to the airstrip and that it cannot be removed. Lots in Eagle’s Crest, also known as Lakeside Club, were sold based on the subdivision being marketed as accessible by aircraft, said Sean Frampton, attorney for the plaintiffs. 

That marketing dates back to 2006, under a declaration stating the intent to preserve the subdivision as a fly-in, fly-out community, according to documents filed in court. A 2004 declaration is the first mention that a private airstrip may be included in the subdivision.  

Retired United Airlines pilot Chandler Copps said he bought his property in 2020 under the impression he’d have access to the runway. When he constructed his house, Copps included a shed for building aircraft.  

The airstrip in Eagle’s Crest is unlike any other, he said, with a perfect view of flying over Flathead Lake. 

His neighbor Dan Derlatka, a licensed pilot who bought his property at Eagle’s Crest in 2013, agreed. Derlatka said he has more than 40 logged flight hours using the airstrip. 

Copps and Derlatka are two of six listed plaintiffs in the lawsuit against TAL & PGL, LLC. Terry and Patrick Leiser; the Eagle’s Crest Homeowners Association; Harris Court Investments, LLC; and Trevor Shaeffer are the defendants. 

NEWS THAT the airstrip would be removed arrived via a November 2023 letter sent from TAL & PGL, LLC, to the Eagle’s Crest community.  

“It has become clear that its limited use has prompted consideration for a replacement amenity providing a more appropriate shared community amenity for our members,” the letter read.  

TAL &PGL, LLC, offered to build a clubhouse, featuring a pickleball court and a pool, in replace of the airstrip. 

“It came with no warning,” Copps said of the letter, adding that he’s become unpopular within the community since the lawsuit was filed. 

He’s seen as the guy standing in the way of the clubhouse, he said. Several plaintiffs described the lawsuit as creating tension between them and their neighbors.  

In June 2024, members of the community received ballots from the Eagle’s Crest Homeowners Association to vote on three matters. The first was a resolution to restore TAL & PGL, LLC, as declarants — allowing them to make changes within the neighborhood — by recertifying a 2018 amendment.  

The second was a vote to remove all mention of “runway” from the association’s covenants. Finally, stakeholders were asked to vote on the removal of the airstrip. 

The defendants claim a supermajority of the votes were in favor of removing the airstrip. The plaintiffs contest the results, claiming the election was invalid.  

Removal of the airstrip was intended to begin in the fall of 2024, but plans were paused after the lawsuit was filed. 

The defendants argue that the airstrip is private property of the Leiser brothers and within their right to sell, said defense attorney Alanah Griffith. There is nothing in writing promising the airstrip as a permanent amenity in the Eagle’s Crest community, she said. 

Not all pilots in the community are against removing the airstrip, she added. Court documents show records of John Paul Noyes and David Booth, both certified pilots, voting in favor of removing the runway language from the covenants. 

The case is before Judge Amy Eddy. A status hearing was held on April 15, and a pre-trial conference is scheduled for Jan. 21, 2026. 

Reporter Hannah Shields may be reached at 758-4439 or [email protected].