Downtown plan to be unveiled Monday

The Daily Inter Lake

On Monday night, the city of Kalispell and the board of the Business Improvement District will unveil for the community a plan of action for the downtown area.

The consultants hired to draft the plan will deliver their findings and recommendations for Kalispell. The city and the improvement district board plan to use those findings and suggestions to guide the future of downtown, board chairwoman Judy Larson said.

"I think it will be very enlightening for the whole community," she said.

The Virginia-based firm HyettPalma has spent the last four months gathering information about Kalispell and nearby business areas such as Whitefish and Bigfork. The firm used that data to create suggestions for the city, such as what areas would be good residential spots and what kinds of businesses would flourish here.

The city and the district each pitched in $20,000 to pay for the study by Hyett Palma, which specializes in downtown economic enhancement plans.

Kalispell is at a prime position to consider such a plan because its downtown is in a state of change with some businesses coming and some going and some doing well while others struggle, Larson said. Kalispell will benefit from hiring a company to draft the plan rather than relying solely on city officials, merchants and other residents, she said.

"Just having the outside eye," she explained, "really is very helpful. So many of us are so close to it, it's hard to be objective."

HyettPalma will deliver a presentation on its plan Monday night. The improvement district board plans to consider the company's recommendations, then hire a director to implement the plan.

"That'd be the marching orders for that director to follow," Larson said.

The presentation runs from 7-8:30 p.m. at the Kalispell Center WestCoast Hotel. The public is welcome to attend and comment on the plan.