Local road wish list tops $112 million

A public hearing on the Kalispell area's proposed new transportation plan is scheduled for Dec. 11 before the city's planning board.

The hearing will follow a Dec. 4 Technical Advisory Committee meeting to take its last look at the proposed plan. That committee advises central Flathead governments on highway matters.

And sometime after Dec. 11, the Kalispell City Council will hold a hearing and vote on whether to adopt the plan, which is a guideline for future urban growth decisions.

The plan is a list of proposed federally funded street improvements that Kalispell and the surrounding area likely will need through 2030. And that plan includes a small bit ? but not all ? of the roughly $100 million cost for a U.S. 93 bypass.

The City Council and Planning Board discussed the proposed plans Monday night at a workshop session at which no votes were legally allowed.

At roughly $112 million, it's far more than the city of Kalispell realistically can wish for during the next several years.

"You've got way more needs than money is available. So what do you do about it?" traffic consultant Jeff Key told the council and Planning Board.

The previous long-range Kalispell-area transportation plan was adopted in 1993 ? with little of it accomplished by 2007.

Two of 27 projects proposed in 1993 have been finished, with one being the long-drawn-out Meridian Road upgrades, Key said.

The proposed 2007-through-2030 plan includes 31 significant projects that would cost $109.3 million, and 28 small fix-it projects that would cost almost $2.8 million.

Council member Hank Olson said the biggest influence on those 31 projects will be how fast and in what sequence the U.S. 93 Bypass is built.

Key agreed to the council and planning board request to identify the most, lesser and least important proposed projects by the December hearings.

The draft 2007 plan is posted on the city's Web site at www.kalispell.com.

Some proposed projects include:

? Replacing the Old Steel Bridge.

? More work on widening all of U.S. 93 North to four lanes.

? Widening West Reserve Drive in several segments.

? Improving Whitefish Stage Road in several segments.

? Upgrading Helena Flats Road.

? Upgrading Stillwater Road in several segments.

? Extending Rose Crossing and Church Drive.

For more on this story, read Wednesday's Daily Inter Lake.