Kalispell City Council passes stormwater impact fee report

Kalispell City Council on Monday passed an updated stormwater impact fee report that raises rates.

Changes to the stormwater plan are required every five years by state law, and the council has been grappling with this round of revisions for months. Several people spoke during public comment about how rising fees within Kalispell city limits are driving people to live outside of town and contributed to urban sprawl.

The stormwater impact fees, which are meant to bring equity between existing city utility customers and new customers that connect to the stormwater system, sparked more than 30 minutes of debate from councilors, some of whom thought residential buildings should see only half the increase that commercial buildings would.

Kalispell Mayor Mark Johnson disagreed, saying that increasing the fees on commercial uses more than residential would only cause those increases to be passed to consumers.

“I think it’s time as government we step up and say this is what it really costs to provide the services we provide,” Johnson said. “That’s how it works, it’s economics.”

Kalispell’s former stormwater impact fee of $1,121 per newly constructed single-family home and $841 per duplex or multi-family unit is based on the city’s 2006 impact fee study. Commercial stormwater fees are calculated on impervious area, and range from $1,121 per 2,400 square feet up to $6,726 per acre.

The new study’s rates increase the single-family stormwater fee to $1,236 and duplex/multifamily to $927 per unit.

Commercial stormwater fees will increase to a range of $1,236 per 2,400 square feet to $7,416 per acre.

The only dissenting vote came from Councilman Wayne Saverud. The motion passed.

Also on Monday, council voted to add up to an additional $9,917 to a Core Area Tax Increment Financing District Grant to assist in the development of a multi-family housing project at 1110 Husky St.

Rather than being paid all at once, the city will reimburse Husky Partners, LLC as funds become available from tax-increment revenues generated by the redevelopment project on an annual basis until the total $86,780 is repaid.

City Manager Doug Russell said the change is mostly because the initial proposal held such specific numbers. He said numbers in projects like these often change slightly as it advances, and because the initial amount approved by the council was slightly low, they were coming back to be approved for the additional funds.

The property being renovated will consist of multi-family housing that addresses a need for rental housing in the area, according to the resolution approved by the council.

The next council working session will be held Nov. 27 at 7 p.m. The next regular meeting is set for Dec. 4 at 7 p.m. Both meetings will be in the council chambers at City Hall.

Reporter Peregrine Frissell can be reached at (406) 758-4438 or pfrissell@dailyinterlake.com.