Whitefish asks $3.1 million for land deal addition

How much is open space worth in Whitefish? City residents will have a chance to decide.

In an unprecedented move, the Whitefish City Council will ask voters if they want to pay $3.1 million for a .44-acre lakefront lot on the western edge of City Beach on Whitefish Lake. The undeveloped, wooded lot would give the city an opportunity to expand its much-used beach and lakefront park.

The council on Monday approved a resolution authorizing a mail-ballot election for a general obligation bond of $3.19 million - $3.1 million for the land and $90,000 to cover the costs of issuing the bonds. Ballots will be mailed to voters in late September or early October, with an Oct. 10 deadline for returning the ballots.

Whitefish has 3,800 active registered voters, the county election department said, plus another 483 inactive voters who could reactivate their status up until the day of the election.

The city can't wait to run the ballot issue in the November general election because a buy-sell agreement allows 100 days for the city to close the transaction, and the election department requires 60 days after approval of the resolution to conduct the election.

"In my tenure we've never done this," Whitefish City Attorney John Phelps said of the bond issue. "We basically ask voters to tax themselves."

If approved, the bond would span 20 years and cost the owner of a $300,000 home about $86 a year. Phelps said that "under the best of circumstances," the tax burden could be lessened if the city continues to grow and more property owners are added to the tax rolls.

The city spent several months negotiating with the

property owner to arrive at the $3.1 million price tag. The property, with 99.7 feet of lakefront, was appraised at about $3.56 million, or $36,000 per lakefront foot.

"As high as it seems, it seems to be a fair price," Phelps said.

Whitefish Realtor Joe Basirico agreed with Phelps' assessment.

"The city is not overpaying," Basirico said. "Personally I think it's a critical piece for the city to get. The way development is going, open space for the city is more and more critical."

Whitefish Lake frontage currently is selling for anywhere from $27,000 to $35,000 per front foot, depending on location.

Realtor Ken Stein of Chuck Olson Real Estate in Whitefish is representing the property owner, who wishes to remain anonymous.

The undeveloped parcel has resort residential zoning that would allow multifamily development, probably in the form of four to six townhomes, Basirico said.

"That to me is the biggest negative to City Beach," he added about the potential for development.

Phelps said the city has approached local philanthropists with the ability to help the city pay for the property, but doesn't have a firm answer from anyone yet.

"They've not said no," he said.

Mayor Andy Feury said that while the city has "lot of great benefactors, sometimes we have to help ourselves out.

"This is an opportunity that won't present itself again for quite some time," he said.

Council member Nancy Woodruff said the property purchase is "a great thing" to let voters decide.

"This isn't something the city has to do," she said, adding that she'd likely vote to approve it because she values open space.

WHITEFISH CITY Beach has been a valuable piece of open space since the town's early days. Located on the south shore of the lake, the beach was used informally for swimming and boating since Whitefish was founded more than 100 years ago.

According to "Stumptown to Ski Town," the Park Board was authorized by the council in spring 1912 to assume jurisdiction of the "park at Lakeside." In 1916 the area was cleaned up, the first bathhouse was built and Ordinance No. 17 was passed to "secure the quiet, orderly and suitable use, enjoyment and care of the parks and public places."

A small piece of disputed land claimed by A.J. Creon at the end of Oregon Avenue was purchased by the city in 1960 for $1,200. Creon had a dock on the property where the city wanted to locate its dock.

"The case strung out for over a year, but in the end, Creon removed his dock and the city built theirs," "Stumptown to Ski Town" noted.

Today, City Beach is considered one of the nicest municipal beaches in the region. The city made significant upgrades to the beach and park in the late 1980s using revenue from Whitefish's tax-increment district.

Features editor Lynnette Hintze may be reached at 758-4421 or by e-mail at lhintze@dailyinterlake.com