State says path along Montana 35 needs community support

A shared-use path along Montana 35 in Bigfork could become a reality with financial backing from the community, state highway officials recently told the Flathead County commissioners.

The Ice Box Canyon project is slated for sometime beyond 2025. The project will reconstruct the highway just south of the intersection with Peaceful Drive and extend north through Ict Box Canyon, to just north of Chapman Hill Road.

The project calls for a 12-foot travel lane in each direction, a center left-turn lane in the area between Peaceful Drive and approximately the south end of Ice Box Canyon, a raised median barrier through the canyon, and a left-turn deceleration lane northbound at Chapman Hill Road. Roadway shoulder, horizontal curve, clear zone, and drainage improvements also will be included in the roadway reconstruction, according to the Department of Transportation.

The project will require right-of-way acquisition and utility relocation.

“The community has indicated they would like a shared-use path, but one of the big challenges is coming up with the funding to maintain it,” Vosen said. “It takes completely different equipment.”

Vosen said he’s hearing community interest from Bigfork residents in an approach similar to the Evergreen community, where sidewalks are planned along the U.S. 2 corridor.

Evergreen community leaders applied for a $1 million state grant to complete the work. Earlier this summer the commissioners created a special district that would tax the owners of 61 properties along the highway to cover the maintenance of the sidewalks in perpetuity. However, a clause in the county’s resolution requires the Evergreen community to pitch in $50,000 for the project.

Holmquist said she hasn’t yet heard from any Bigfork organization offering to take on a proposal similar to Evergreen.

According to Bob Vosen, Missoula District administrator for the Montana Department of Transportation, the state has started the design for a shared-use path in Ice Box Canyon, and it will require new right of way.

“My thought is if the community wants a path, we need a maintenance agreement signed with the county,” Vosen said. “I think Evergreen can be a good model for these communities.”