Judge rejects sewer-connection claim

A Flathead County district judge has rejected a claim that developers in south Kalispell are required to hook up to oversized water and sewer lines that run to a development 2 miles outside city limits.

The oversized lines were installed by Montana Venture Partners as a way to extend city utilities to the Old School Station, a light industrial park in south Kalispell. The lines were included at the city’s request as part of the annexation approval for the development.

Developer Paul Wachholz maintained the city must force new construction projects within a “service area” that is part of his agreement with the city to connect to the lines and pay a latecomers fee.

District Judge Ted Lympus rejected this order in a ruling on Dec. 18, stating that developers attempting to connect to the utilities are allowed to hook up wherever it is most sensible for them.

The ruling stated that only those subsequent developers who “would benefit from the extensions” or the extended utility line should connect to the extension and pay the latecomers fee.

The dispute arose in 2013 when Gardner Investments LLC planned to develop property it owned directly outside Kalispell’s south city limits on the southeast corner of Willow Glen Drive and U.S. 93.

As part of the development plan, Gardner proposed to hook into previously existing city water and sewer lines that ended across the street from the piece of property at that time.

“If someone does not tie into the line, they should not pay,” Gardner’s attorney Duncan Scott said. “It was easier [for Gardner] to tie into the existing city lines across the street, so there was no need to hook up to something else and then pay an additional fee.”

According to Scott, the latecomer fee would be paid to Wachholz through the city, and the amount would vary depending on the utilities the development would use.

“Obviously, something like a hotel would have a larger fee associated with it because it would use more of those utilities,” Scott said. “Even though [Gardner] was developing something that would use less, the fee would still be a large sum.”

Part of the Gardner development had been slated to be a car dealership.

Scott speculated that if the judge had ruled for the order and required Gardner to attach to the oversized Montana Venture Partners line, it would create a “bubble” in south Kalispell where no developer would want to build because of the fee.

Reporter Brianna Loper may be reached at 758-4441 or by email at bloper@dailyinterlake.com.