Assisted living facility possible for Col. Falls
The Daily Inter Lake
If approved at the March 16 Columbia Falls City Council meeting, a request to rezone property off Meadow Lake Boulevard could pave the way for a new assisted living facility.
A public hearing for the rezoning will be announced at tonight's council meeting.
Council members will be asked to consider a request to change zoning from CI-1 light industrial to CRA-1 residential apartment on a parcel of land at 1947 Ninth St. W.
The land now is owned by Harry Cheff and lies east of Meadow Lake Boulevard, north of U.S. 2 (also numbered as Ninth Street West), and southwest of Best Way, the road that runs past Plum Creek Timber Co. and the green box site.
Tonight's notice of the public hearing sets the stage for the rezone request that will be on the Columbia Falls Planning Board agenda March 10. It the planning board recommends approving the request next week, it then advances to the council for final action.
An assisted living facility would be allowed under the residential apartment zoning, but not under the light industrial zoning.
Another land-use issue is expected to be formalized tonight. At their last meeting, council members approved the final plat for the Opalka Addition, a minor three-lot subdivision created from one large residential lot along Talbott Road near Veterans Drive. Tonight they act on the formal resolution to create the three separate lots. One home currently sits on the single large lot.
The council also will:
n Consider a proposal from Mark Riffey of Rescue Marketing for Web site development to update and improve the city's official online site. They will discuss cost vs. benefit and whether to proceed.
n Consider an application for grant money through the state Department of Transportation's Montana Air and Congestion Initiative. The city hopes to buy a street sweeper that will control dust and improve air quality. Similar but smaller equipment was bought with grant money a few years ago.
n Consider Fire Chief Bob Webber's request for an emergency responder reply system. It lets firefighters dial an automatic toll-free number when they leave home in response to a call, allowing the fire station to track who is on the way and how long since they left.
n City Manager Bill Shaw will update the council on the wastewater treatment plant project. Upgrades for the pretreatment system has been bid and equipment purchases are underway, and planning is on for the second phase.
The meeting starts at 7 p.m. in City Hall.