Area pre-release plan praised, panned

Residents voiced mixed opinions on the proposed site of a Kalispell pre-release center during a well-attended public meeting to discuss the project Thursday night.

Public response was mostly positive at the meeting, which was held at the facility's proposed location in the old Montana Department of Health and Human Services building, 2282 U.S. 93 South.

"I can guarantee you it works," said RJ Christensen, whose Kalispell homeless shelter, A Ray of Hope, uses highly regimented and life-skills oriented programming similar to that used at pre-release centers.

"I just know that this would actually decrease crime in our city."

Residents, mental-health workers, law-enforcement officers and employees of the county justice system expressed support for the project - a 40-bed facility for male offenders - and its proposed location.

Offenders are returning to Kalispell, and putting them in a facility that provides a structured environment and services to help inmates re-integrate into society is better than no supervision at all, officials said.

"In our community, every day, people are returning from Montana State Prison and they are returning from the Department of Corrections," said Bonnie Olson, Flathead County District Court administrator and member of the local 12-member working committee tasked with determining public support for the proposed location.

"It's a reality whether we like it or not," Olson said. "We're not importing prisoners."

Some area business owners, however, voiced concern that the pre-release center's proposed location could drive down property values - despite assurances to the contrary - and isn't in line with the city's long-term vision for southern Kalispell.

"This just doesn't fit the picture that we're all working towards down here," said Vaughn Penrod, who owns Penco Power Products with his brother, Kirk.

Penco is located immediately south of the old Department of Health and Human Services building.

"I think there are many other places in the valley we can explore," said Cory Utterback, who also associated with a nearby business.

But Blake Smith, a Kalispell resident who used to run a business across the alley from the Butte pre-release center, said the facilities actually benefit business. Smith said that during eight or nine years she hired 20 to 25 of the pre-release center's residents.

Steve McArthur, director of community correctional programs for Community, Counseling and Correctional Services Inc., said Thursday the proposed location on U.S. 93 South "is perfect for us."

Community, Counseling and Correctional Services is the Butte-based nonprofit that in December was awarded the state contract to operate the planned Kalispell facility.

The state requires that pre-release centers be placed in areas with access to city sewer and water and emergency response times must be within a certain limit. Pre-release center inmates generally aren't allowed to drive, requiring proximity to job centers and public transportation.

But zoning ordinances in Kalispell and Flathead County and state rules will prevent the proposed pre-release center from being built in residential areas or next to schools and parks.

People will have another opportunity to present formal testimony regarding the pre-release center's location at a March 10 public hearing before the Kalispell Planning Board.

After that meeting, scheduled for 7 p.m. in the council chambers at City Hall, the Planning Board is expected to forward its recommendation to the Kalispell City Council.

If the proposed site makes it past the City Council, the working committee will commission Montana State University-Billings to conduct a survey of everyone within a half-mile radius of the old Department of Health and Human Services building. The project will proceed only if the working committee determines the survey reflects community support for the proposed site.

McArthur said his organization is prepared to spend about $3 million on acquiring the building, making renovations and building an addition for food, laundry and shower services. The Legislature has appropriated $1.9 million to fund a Kalispell pre-release center for its first year.

Flathead County has about 1,300 people in the state corrections system. Lake and Lincoln counties contribute another 650 offenders.

Reporter Nicholas Ledden can be reached at 758-4441 or by e-mail at nledden@dailyinterlake.com