Next up in North Kalispell: 14 buildings on 28 acres

Plans are emerging for a new phase of commercial development in north Kalispell involving 14 buildings on 28 acres south of Costco.

The Missouri-based Kroenke Group has submitted preliminary information to the Kalispell Planning Office that will be the focus of a Feb. 10 Kalispell Planning Board work session.

“This just hit our desk,” Planning Director Tom Jentz said Thursday. “We are just starting to unfold and process what’s going on.”

Spring Prairie Center Phase 4 — on property referred to as Victory Commons — calls for 14 building pads on state school trust land on the southwest corner of Old Reserve Drive and U.S. 93. 

The property encompasses the former Department of Natural Resources and Conservation property in an L-shaped parcel. It borders the Kidsports Complex and is just south of McDonald’s and Costco.

Four of the building pads will accommodate larger buildings and will be set back from Old Reserve Drive, Jentz said.

The 10 remaining smaller pads will line U.S. 93 and Old Reserve Drive, the road that runs along the south side of Costco. Jentz said the developer has not yet provided any information about the stores to be built there.

“They’d like to start moving dirt in April and have building pads ready in July,” Jentz said. “They want a tenant in operation by Thanksgiving.”

The Kroenke Group is asking for a new stoplight at the intersection of U.S. 93 and the highway entrance to Flathead Valley Community College. There also would be several access points to the shopping center from Old Reserve Drive.

The development will require a Kalispell growth policy amendment to change the land use from public open space to commercial. A zone change to general business, or B-5, also is needed along with subdivision and a planned-unit development approval.

“That’s a lot” to get done by April, Jentz said.

Some of the property in this round of Spring Prairie Center development previously was part of the Kidsports complex.

“This is the culmination of several years of study and cooperation between the DNRC [state Department of Natural Resources and Conservation], Kidsports and the city to provide a developable site for commercial development,” Jentz said.

The upcoming work session will be followed by a Planning Board public hearing on March 10.

The Montana State Land Board last year approved a long-term lease with Kroenke to develop the property for Spring Prairie Phase 4. The lease is expected to bring in $2.7 million in state revenue over the next 25 years.

The previous three phases of Spring Prairie — which include Lowe’s, Costco and Cabela’s — also involved state land parcels in the 25- to 30-acre range. 

Phase three, anchored by Cabela’s, is almost completely built out with several new stores opening late last year. 

One of the final pieces in the third phase would be a Chick-fil-A restaurant scheduled for construction in 2016 next to the new Verizon store.

Features editor Lynnette Hintze may be reached at 758-4421 or by email at lhintze@dailyinterlake.com.

 By LYNNETTE

HINTZE

The Daily Inter Lake

Plans are emerging for a new phase of commercial development in north Kalispell involving 14 buildings on 28 acres south of Costco.

The Missouri-based Kroenke Group has submitted preliminary information to the Kalispell Planning Office that will be the focus of a Feb. 10 Kalispell Planning Board work session.

“This just hit our desk,” Planning Director Tom Jentz said Thursday. “We are just starting to unfold and process what’s going on.”

Spring Prairie Center Phase 4 — on property referred to as Victory Commons — calls for 14 building pads on state school trust land on the southwest corner of Old Reserve Drive and U.S. 93. 

The property encompasses the former Department of Natural Resources and Conservation property in an L-shaped parcel. It borders the Kidsports Complex and is just south of McDonald’s and Costco.

Four of the building pads will accommodate larger buildings and will be set back from Old Reserve Drive, Jentz said.

The 10 remaining smaller pads will line U.S. 93 and Old Reserve Drive, the road that runs along the south side of Costco. Jentz said the developer has not yet provided any information about the stores to be built there.

“They’d like to start moving dirt in April and have building pads ready in July,” Jentz said. “They want a tenant in operation by Thanksgiving.”

The Kroenke Group is asking for a new stoplight at the intersection of U.S. 93 and the highway entrance to Flathead Valley Community College. There also would be several access points to the shopping center from Old Reserve Drive.

The development will require a Kalispell growth policy amendment to change the land use from public open space to commercial. A zone change to general business, or B-5, also is needed along with subdivision and a planned-unit development approval.

“That’s a lot” to get done by April, Jentz said.

Some of the property in this round of Spring Prairie Center development previously was part of the Kidsports complex.

“This is the culmination of several years of study and cooperation between the DNRC [state Department of Natural Resources and Conservation], Kidsports and the city to provide a developable site for commercial development,” Jentz said.

The upcoming work session will be followed by a Planning Board public hearing on March 10.

The Montana State Land Board last year approved a long-term lease with Kroenke to develop the property for Spring Prairie Phase 4. The lease is expected to bring in $2.7 million in state revenue over the next 25 years.

The previous three phases of Spring Prairie — which include Lowe’s, Costco and Cabela’s — also involved state land parcels in the 25- to 30-acre range. 

Phase three, anchored by Cabela’s, is almost completely built out with several new stores opening late last year. 

One of the final pieces in the third phase would be a Chick-fil-A restaurant scheduled for construction in 2016 next to the new Verizon store.

Features editor Lynnette Hintze may be reached at 758-4421 or by email at lhintze@dailyinterlake.com.