Kalispell poised to award street reconstruction bid

The bid to replace about 14 blocks of street and the water pipe on Fourth Avenue East will be awarded during tonight’s Kalispell City Council meeting.

The planned capital improvement project will replace approximately 5,600 linear feet of 6-inch and 8-inch cast-iron pipe mains with 8-inch PVC water main along Fourth Avenue East between East Center Street and 14th Street East and on 14th Street East between Third Avenue East. The project will include the new water main, fire hydrants, water valves, water services, water-meter pits, street reconstruction, storm sewer and tree replacements.

LHC Inc. submitted the low bid for the project at $2.4 million. The project is funded by a State Revolving Fund loan with about $3.9 million available for the project.

Construction is expected to begin this month and finish in October 2017.

In other business, the council will consider an offer made last week by Knife River to sell a plot of land adjacent to Lawrence Park to the city of Kalispell for one dollar. If accepted, the 16-acre parcel would provide room for a network of nature trails through a forested area for public use, as suggested by the city manager.

According to a survey of the property, portions of the land are prone to wet conditions, so city staff does not anticipate full use of the area for park and, but says improvements to the area would likely be made over time.

The council will hold a public hearing for a city growth-policy amendment that would allow for the development of a 56-acre property bordered by the Stillwater River. The request from Spartan Holdings LLC aims to change the zoning for the property on the Kalispell growth policy map from suburban residential to an urban mixed use designation. The request is one part of a multifaceted application process that also includes an annexation and initial zoning application, and planned-unit development placeholder overlay zone application for the entire 56-acre property.

The Stillwater Bend development would create a subdivision of apartments, offices and businesses across from the Kalispell North Town Center, which recently broke ground, with a planned extension of Rose Crossing connecting the two.

The council meets at 7 p.m. at the Kalispell City Hall.

For more information on the agenda visit http://kalispell.com/mayor_and_city_council/agenda.php.

Reporter Mary Cloud Taylor can be reached at 758-4459 or mtaylor@dailyinterlake.com.