Kalispell council to consider Glacier Rail subdivision

The Kalispell City Council is meeting at 7 p.m. Monday in city hall to usher in the long-awaited Glacier Rail Park, another step towards downtown revitalization.

The Flathead County Economic Development Authority is looking to annex an additional 3.38 acres of land into the city to be included in the new project. The land is currently in the county, and zoned for heavy industrial use.

The council will also consider a separate but related resolution to subdivide 44 acres that constitute the rail park into seven rail-served lots and one common area lot.

Back in 2014, the council had approved preliminary plans for the park to be subdivided into 20 smaller rail-served lots, but the Flathead County Economic Development Authority has since decided bigger lots were more marketable than the smaller ones and are looking to change their tack.

The Glacier Rail Park is currently under construction along Whitefish Stage Road and the Stillwater River near the border with Evergreen.

Once it is complete, the rail tracks that have run through the center of Kalispell will be removed and businesses that depend on their proximity to the tracks will relocate to the rail park, which will allow the tracks to more effectively circumvent town.

The Kalispell Planning Board held a public hearing on the annexation on April 10, but received no input. They recommended the city council approve the annexation.

Here are the other things on the council’s agenda on Monday evening:

— The council will also consider preliminary approval of a request for the subdivision of a 1.01-acre tract into four residential lots with a shared common area at the intersection of Sylvan Drive and College Avenue. The request comes from Jeremy Peterson.

— Marquardt Surveying, Inc., on behalf of Touchstone, LLC is requesting final approval of a seven lot residential subdivision in a development at Mountain Vista Estates off the intersection of Three Mile Drive and Farm to Market Road. The proposal is the third phase of the four phase project.

— The council will also vote on authorizing the release of funds from the FY 2019 preliminary budget necessary for city operations and schedule a public hearing on the preliminary budget for July 2.

— Mayor Mark Johnson is proposing Barbara Truckner as the newest member of the Police Commission. The appointment is subject to council approval.

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