Revised zoning ordinance up for hearing

After nine months of reworking the city’s zoning ordinance, the Kalispell Planning Board will hold a public hearing on the updates on Jan. 12.

Beginning at 7 p.m. Tuesday in City Hall Council Chambers, Planning Board members will open their regular meeting to gather comments and concerns regarding the proposed draft of the updated ordinance.

Planning staff characterize the changes not as a rewrite, but as a fine-tuning to make the document more user friendly and to better reflect the city as it looks today.

Here are some major goals in the changes:

n Eliminate ambiguities and outdated terms.

n Consolidate RA-2 with RA-3 multi-family zones and B-2 with B-3 business zones.

n Streamline and standardize property development standards.

n Review the intents of each zone and adjust uses accordingly.

n Update definitions to reflect current terms and uses.

n Provide a better connection between the zoning ordinance and the city’s growth policy.

n Provide a method for minor administrative variances from some development standards.

n Modify the administrative conditional use permit process.

n Amend parking regulations downtown by reducing the number of required spaces.

Planning staff and board members also addressed other minor changes in a series of seven work sessions beginning last spring.

Throughout the process, the planning staff sent notices to architects, builders, developers, community groups and others who may be interested. They held an open house Nov. 19, attended by two architects.

Board members voted at their Dec. 8 meeting that the draft is ready for a public hearing.

The entire zoning ordinance, both in its finished draft form and in a format that shows original wording and how it was changed, is available online at www.kalispell.com/planning under “Planning Board Projects.”

Copies also are available for review at the planning office in the basement of Kalispell City Hall, 201 First Ave. E.

Written comments may be sent to the above address before the hearing or e-mailed to planning@kalispell.com. The planning office can be reached at 758-7940.

Comments will be considered in the recommendation that the Planning Board will make to Kalispell City Council, which takes final action.