Four projects, 4,000 homes

Kalispell council considers large annexations

The Daily Inter Lake

Four projects seeking annexation theoretically would add about 4,000 homes to Kalispell over the next 20 years.

On Monday, the Kalispell City Council will discuss current and future annexation and zoning requests from the four development groups. This will be a workshop with no votes legally allowed - and is a preparation session for the council's July 2 meeting.

All but the Flathead Village Greens project have faced some neighborhood opposition so far, mostly because of density and traffic concerns.

The four projects are:

. The first phase of the Starling project from The Aspen Group's, which wants to build roughly 3,000 homes on one square mile west of Glacier High School over the next 20 years.

The first phase is expected to soon go to the Kalispell city government - seeking approval to build 131 single-family houses, 98 townhouses and seven multiple-family buildings holding 64 housing units on the site's northeast 63.5 acres.

. Valley Ranch, with its owner Gateway Properties Inc. asking the council to annex the 81-acre site north of the city with zoning for single-family housing with legal modifications - dubbed a "planned unit development" - tacked on.

A planned unit development is a type of contract in which the city would relax some zoning requirements in return for the developer's promise to install mitigation measures.

The Valley Ranch subdivision is earmarked to hold 222 single-family houses plus 80 assisted living units and 20 independent living units inside an assisted living complex.

So far, the council has not given unified directions to Gateway on how it wants this project to proceed. Valley Ranch is located just south of Ponderosa Estates.

. The 181-acre Flathead Village Greens, which has a Kalispell Planning Board recommendation for single-family housing zoning. It then would seek annexation from the City Council. This project is along U.S. 93's west side across the highway from Valley Ranch. No specific construction plans have been unveiled.

. The 139-acre Willow Creek project southwest of Kalispell - bordered by Foy's Lake Road on the south, Ashley Creek on the north and the future U.S. 93 bypass on the east.

Developers Wayne and Hubert Turner have reduced the number of proposed homes on this project from 711 to 580 - 396 single-family houses and 184 condominium units. The Planning Board has strongly hinted that 450 homes would be more acceptable.

Monday's meeting starts at 7 p.m. at City Hall.