High school neighbors discuss parking district

Meeting at Kalispell City Hall on Wednesday, city and Flathead High School officials and a group of high school neighbors will talk about forming a residential parking district around the parking-challenged school.

Discussions will focus on the pros and cons of a district that would limit on-street parking in the area to residents and other people with parking permits. 

Any such district must be approved by the Kalispell City Council. A half-dozen residents agreed to meet to explore the idea.

This is the latest in a series of meetings involving high school neighbors and city and school officials. The goal is to explore ways to resolve neighborhood concerns residents identified in a mail survey done by the city.

Some commonly voiced concerns included parking problems, noise complaints, unsafe driving, litter and smoking and drug use.

A half-dozen people signed up for the committee to explore a residential parking district. Other committees will meet this summer to explore: 

• Painting one parking space per house. 

• Creating a permit program for students to park in certain areas. 

• The high school encouraging students to park in its own lots, building a parking structure or paving over its lawn for more parking. 

• Installing more no-parking signs and striping on neighborhood streets and increasing parking enforcement.

Wednesday’s meeting starts at 4 p.m. in Kalispell City Hall, 201 First Ave. E.

Reporter Tom Lotshaw may be reached at 758-4483 or by email at tlotshaw@dailyinterlake.com.