Council seeks 7 for panel on fees

The Kalispell City Council is seeking people to serve on a committee to help map out the city's proposed impact fees on new developments.

The council wants as many as seven people to serve on the committee, with three voicing interest so far in the panel.

The impact fees would be standard, one-time payments on new construction to offset the increases of government services the new buildings would require.

During a Monday workshop session, council members disagreed and were unsure about whether the proposed impact fees would be levied on new development projects or on individual new houses and buildings.

Council members indicated that the new impact-fee committee should tackle that issue.

Impact fee money is legally allowed to go to capital improvements such as expanding sewage and water plants, building new fire and police substations, constructing new streets or creating parks.

The money cannot be used for routine operations and maintenance, routine upgrades or buying vehicles.

One issue that the new committee will have to tackle is whether and how charges should be calculated for fire and police protection, plus for street work.

Also on Monday, the council:

-Learned the final plat - meaning the final draft of the construction and development conditions - of the 55-acre Old School Station industrial park is scheduled to go to a council vote Tuesday. That approval is needed before the park's developers can sell lots on the site. The council is meeting Tuesday because Monday is Presidents Day.

-Decided to hold a public hearing - on a date to be determined - about a draft policy governing how golfers and nongolfers should use the Buffalo Hill golf course without conflicting with one another.

-Told developers Montana Rental and Beargrass Holdings to resubmit a proposal to buy a small public alley on southern Third Avenue East so they could construct two small apartment buildings. The original proposal was to buy the small unused alley for $500. Council members were looking for a price in the $1,000 to $2,500 range.