Dec. 2 – Some properties in downtown Kalispell may be in need of a necessary makeover.
The Kalispell Business Improvement District is looking to secure funding that would help downtown properties make facade improvements, and the Kalispell City Council is expected to vote Monday on whether to allocate tax increment financing funds to the grant program.
Tax increment financing is primarily intended to encourage the redevelopment of neglected parts of a community.
The Council will meet at City Hall, 201 First Ave. on December 2 at 7 p.m. E.
“Downtown Kalispell is a vital part of the local economy, with a mix of retail, office and residential spaces,” Kisa Davison, chair of the Kalispell Business Improvement District Board, wrote in the funding application. “However, a significant number of buildings in this area require facade renovation to improve their appearance and functionality.”
The money would come from the Downtown and West Side/Core Area districts that fund tax increases aimed at addressing the disaster and promoting economic development in those areas. The city’s urban renewal agency concluded that the project proposal was appropriate and recommended that the Council adopt the resolution.
The districts would spend $20,000 a year on the effort for five years. The business improvement district plans to assist four property owners each year, which equates to 20 property owners.
FOLLOWING FURIOUS comments last week from Mayor Mark Johnson about what he sees as overreach by the state government, Council is expected to set the council’s legislative priorities. The document will go to Helena before the 2025 legislative session.
The Council has chosen to prioritize legislation to promote a voter-approved occupancy tax, public infrastructure assistance, expanded tax increment financing, affordable housing, mental health programs, special districts, environmental quality, and public resource management.
Council is also expected to vote on the appointment of development services director Jarod Nygren as the city’s environmental certification officer.
The position involves completing environmental studies and providing environmental assurances to state and federal officials on behalf of the city, according to a report from Nygren.
This role is necessary so the city can continue to apply for state and federal grants after Thomas Jentz retires.
“Given a number of outstanding state grant applications, it is prudent to update the resolution so that I can continue to sign environmental documents if necessary,” Nygren wrote in the report.
ALSO, the Council is expected to hire Colorado-based planning firm Logan Simpson to help communicate decisions to the public surrounding the approval of a new land use plan in accordance with state law.
Senate Bill 382, also known as the Montana Land Use Planning Act, was signed into law by Governor Greg Gianforte in May 2023. It requires Kalispell, among other Montana cities, to rewrite its land use plan, relying heavily on public input.
Planning officials say the city’s existing land use plan likely does not need to be changed and can be re-adopted in accordance with the law.
The legislation was intended to streamline development within the city by limiting public input on site-specific projects and shifting authority to the Kalispell Planning Department to approve developments instead of the Council.
The city was awarded $30,000 to hire a firm that would facilitate public involvement in the construction of a new land use plan. The money comes from a Montana Department of Commerce Montana Community Reinvestment Plan Act Planning Grant.
Although not a PR firm, Logan Simpson specializes in planning outreach. The project will be executed from the company’s office in Fort Collins, Colorado.
With the city-appointed position of the Flathead City-County Board of Health set to expire at the end of this year, the Council must appoint a new elected official to the role. Former Ward 3 Councilman Rod Kuntz is the current appointee.
The board guides the operation of the City-County Health Department.
Reporter Jack Underhill can be reached at 758-4407 and junderhill@dailyinterlake.com.
