City delays Old School annexation

A compromise was reached Monday night to allow a local couple to obtain a liquor license that was hampered by Kalispell's annexation of land for the Old School Station industrial park.

Montana Venture Partners, developers of Old School Station, asked the Kalispell City Council to change the effective date of annexation for the industrial park to Aug. 15 so Tim Quigley and Nancy Skene can receive a county liquor license for the pub they plan to open in Somers.

"It was a gesture of our understanding and our appreciation for what they're trying to do and what we're trying to do," developer Andy Miller said.

The council approved changing the date Monday night.

The original June annexation of the park caused Quigley and Skene to lose the county license for which they had conditional approval. The annexation brought their property within five miles of city limits - and inside that area the Montana Department of Revenue mandates a city license. The couple would have had to apply for one of the city licenses, which are scarce and expensive.

Quigley and the couple's attorney addressed the council several times about the situation and asked the city to either temporarily revoke the annexation or change the effective date so they could get a county license.

In light of the date change, the couple anticipates they will receive the license pending health, building and fire-code approval.

The new annexation date means Miller and his partner Paul Wachholz will face delays in the project, but they felt it was important to work with their neighbors, Miller said.

On Monday the council also approved awarding a $278,000 contract to Morrison Maierle to design and construct infrastructure (such as sewer and lighting) inside the industrial park.

Kalispell is financing $3.1 million in infrastructure work inside the park, which is near the intersection of Demersville and Rocky Cliff roads southeast of Snow Line Tree Co. Montana Venture Partners is paying $3 million to extend city services to the 55-acre park that is 1.9 miles south of town.

Kalispell is working with the developers as a partner on the project in hopes that city sewer and other infrastructure will attract high-tech companies to the park, resulting in good-paying jobs.

Reporter Camden Easterling can be reached at 758-4429 or by e-mail at ceasterling@dailyinterlake.com