C. Falls to buy 28-acre riverfront park land

The Columbia Falls City Council mustered the required 5-2 super-majority vote Monday night, sending the city onto the ownership track for 27.8 acres of proposed riverfront park land.

The $945,000 from the Cedar Creek Trust Fund is the first step in what several hailed as a forward-thinking vision for Columbia Falls' future.

Council members Doug Karper, Mike Shepard, Julie Plevel and Harvey Reikofski, plus Mayor Jolie Fish caught that vision.

Others fear it will drain money away from higher-priority, more immediate needs throughout the city.

Council members Don Barnhart and Charlie McCubbins were in this camp, citing fiscal responsibility as the reason they could not support the purchase and commit the city to future development there.

The council, which had discussed the proposal to buy Kenneth and Carole Bell's land during at least one other council meeting and a workshop, listened to nearly two hours of public comment before casting its vote with very little discussion.

"I had a lot of other questions last week" at the workshop, Shepard said just before the council vote Monday. "This (decision) is as hard as subdivision votes are getting," as the council scours coffers in a city that has no wealthy benefactors for civic projects.

"This could sit a long time" before money to develop park facilities is available, he admitted. Private fund-raising likely will be a prime source.

But, with the Teakettle river access to the south of the Bells' 894 feet of river frontage often crowded, he wanted to make more of the Flathead River accessible to the public. A whitewater park has been proposed to the south by the city's Last Best Place Task Force.

Soon after the expected Aug. 30 closing on the land sale, the land will be annexed into the city. Security fencing will go up and work will begin on developing picnic areas, restrooms, a road into the land and, as support develops, ball diamonds, soccer fields or other amenities.

City Manager Bill Shaw earlier laid out a detailed development scenario that could cost an estimated $600,000 to $700,000.

Flooding was a concern for many.

The land lies within the 100-year flood plain and was inundated in the 1964 flood, but a map developed after talking with landowners back to 1973 showed that, even in high-water years, water never reached the bulk of the property. Huge trees remain above the high-water mark from 1964.

The Bells cleared the land a couple of decades ago for hay ground, providing mostly open space with patches of cottonwoods for shade.

Several speakers advocated for minimal development, limiting the size of parking lots and leaving open space for trails and undeveloped river access. It's a chance to restore some of the riverfront-park vision of city father James Talbott, Dave Renfrow said.

Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Carol Pike encouraged the purchase, characterizing it as "essentially using land to purchase land." The Columbia Falls Uptown Merchants Association strongly supported it.

Whitewater canoeist Greg Fortin was enthusiastic about the "huge potential to have a whitewater course." Others echoed the sentiment, noting hefty revenues that whitewater festivals bring to other towns.

State Sen. Dan Weinberg, D-Whitefish, recounted the public-private partnerships that built The Wave fitness center, "and (now) we have something there that is greater than the sum of the parts. I see that same opportunity here."

County Commissioner Gary Hall said the county's 300 feet of land on the southwest corner could be used for parking and foot access. He enthusiastically backed the purchase.

Both Columbia Falls Youth Softball Association's

Kathryn Price and Columbia Falls Youth Soccer Association's Kristi Hatfield said their organizations have outgrown their facilities and welcome the opportunities at a new city park.

"We have been waiting for a day like this," Price said.

Patti Gregorson, executive director of Habitat for Humanity (which is building six homes just a block from the new park's entrance) assured the council that "your community will stand behind you. The support we got was amazing. I believe in community, I believe in families. and this type of project supports that very well."

Barry Conger, co-leader of the First Best Place Task Force, spoke as a financial professional when he told the council that the purchase would be a "prudent investment of (the trust's) intended purpose." Land "is an asset that makes sense" for the city government, and a destination park will bring in both direct and general revenue.

Support was not unanimous.

Dan Schellinger, Mike Allen and Will Loveall spoke at last week's workshop in efforts to discourage the purchase. Shellinger on Monday night put the developed price tag near $2 million on a piece of land that "floods every three years." He questioned the cost of repairing that damage regularly.

"Let's fix the potholes," he urged. "A lot of areas around town would like sidewalks," existing parks need maintenance and a paid fire department is on the horizon.

"Where will you get the money for that? The trust was set up for the betterment of the whole city. You voted for the street levy," he said, "so why not have a vote here?"

Connie Konopatzke, former city clerk and finance director, is adamantly opposed.

"I worked for the city for 25 years" and always served as a fiscal watchdog, she said. "I want the basics before the luxuries." Pegging the cost of current basic needs at $8 million, she took issue with out-of-towners who testified in favor of the park earlier.

"I do not think people who live outside the city should have a say, because they don't pay the bills."

Carl Sorenson, too, lobbied for a public vote and said that not enough thought had gone into future use of the land. Another speaker urged the city to reclaim Pinewood Park from its swimming-pool usage, and put more resources into upkeep for existing city parks instead of making the new purchase.

Jane Bell supported the project but questioned trading more than 300 acres of land in the Cedar Creek Reservoir for 28 acres of parkland, and noted that "flood-plain building is ridiculous."

The pristine riverfront area can provide great public access, she said, but foot and bicycle traffic should be encouraged through small parking areas and better citywide trail system.

Stacy Jacobson, too, encouraged minimal development. She called the park, where children can play and parents can set aside worries, a safety feature for the city. "This is not a luxury but a necessity to the safety of this community," she said.

Olaf Ervin of Montana Mapping Associates and the First Best Place Task Force pointed out that this stretch of undeveloped land helps protect downstream property from further flood damage.

"The decision tonight is a lot more than dollars and cents," Ervin said. "Let's remember the public safety. Let's remember what is here that can't be replaced."

Reporter Nancy Kimball can be reached at 758-4483 or by e-mail at nkimball@dailyinterlake.com