Parking plan goes to City Council

A proposal to create parking restrictions around the Flathead High School area is now idling in front of the Kalispell City Council.

At a work session Monday evening, members will discuss restricting certain blocks to resident-only parking. Management of the area’s daytime traffic has been a hot topic for years, but the city may be close to putting a plan in motion.

While the parking district covers about 25 blocks, proposed nonresident parking restrictions would be limited to just five.

“Let’s start small and see how it works,” said Tom Jentz, the city’s planning and building director.

Parking impacts, primarily from Flathead High School, left west-side residents wanting a more manageable system for their own property. The neighborhoods approached the city for a solution.

The proposal before the council would require residents along five blocks to purchase permits for parking. That includes the roadside space on Third Avenue West — from Fifth Street West to Ninth Street — and one block of Fourth Avenue West immediately south of Flathead High. Only residents would be allowed to park on those avenues.

The cost of permits could range from $14 to $70, depending on how the city plans to cover the estimated $4,000 to put up signs. Annual personnel costs for the city are estimated at around $2,800.

The overall management area encompasses the high school and Elrod Elementary, but Jentz said the plan is to ease into restrictions and make changes as needed. The plan includes opportunities for annual additions or subtractions to the restricted areas.

To mitigate the loss of space, the schools have agreed to add some parking. According to a draft plan, Elrod would add around 35 spaces and Flathead would add up to 25.

“The school said they would work diligently to work on that this summer,” Jentz said.

The current draft reflects a compromise between the school district and area neighborhoods. Various proposals have been floated, including the requirement for nonresident permits and an outright resident-only parking area.

In a survey of residents in the area, 42 percent of respondents cited parking as a top neighborhood concern. The topic was second only to trash and litter, which captured 67 percent of the vote.

Neighborhood groups, school district representatives and city boards worked out the current proposal from a trove of data and interviews. The core challenge was finding parking for 1,500 high school students and 130 staff members. Roadside and school-owned parking spaces combined only reach about 1,000 spaces, according to city data.

The Kalispell Planning Board recommended the proposed plan at its January meeting. The city council has already discussed the item at a previous work session and will continue talks on Monday.

The council tonight also plans to go over talking points for an upcoming trip to Washington, D.C. Representatives from the city will travel to meet with elected officials to talk about core area redevelopment and rail park projects.

Tonight’s work session starts at 7 p.m. at City Hall.

Reporter Matt Hudson may be reached at 758-4459 or by email at mhudson@dailyinterlake.com.