Casino - but not signs - approved for restaurant

The Kalispell City Council on Monday decided to continue limiting casino signs for businesses with accessory casinos.

The decision to ban casino signs was part of a vote Monday night to grant a conditional use permit to the Tree Frog Tavern for an accessory casino.

The business currently operates as a restaurant and bar. With the permit, 13 percent of its floor space will be used as a gaming area. Under the city’s zoning ordinance, accessory casinos are limited to 20 percent of the total square footage and must be screened from view of other patrons.

The Kalispell Planning Board previously had recommended approval of the request with six conditions, including a prohibition on neon lighting and signs that advertise the addition.

Kim Larson, a project manager with APEC Engineering Inc., spoke on behalf of the owners of the tavern at Monday night’s meeting. He said the sign ban would create a disadvantage for the business.

“There are four existing casinos that are accessory within 1,000 feet which display the word ‘casino’ on a free-standing sign,” Larson said. “We feel it’s unfair to just say, ‘Absolutely no signage.’”

He asked to work with planning staff to determine appropriate signs outside the facility.

Council member Tim Kluesner initially agreed with Larson.

“If I was a business owner, I would be asking the same thing,” Kluesner said. “It’s a fairness issue in my opinion.”

He listed other casinos in the area that had been allowed to advertise their gaming rooms and said the limitation was moving the goal post for future businesses.

Council member Rod Kuntz said he remembered several recent similar actions, but said he felt like there had been inconsistent decisions.

However, planning officials said the council had set the precedent to ban signs advertising gaming in the last two requests before the council. They pointed to the new Town Pump on West Reserve Drive near U.S. 93, which was prohibited from displaying images that could be tied to a casino.

Kuntz said the Town Pump had been a different situation because the establishment’s name and general advertisements had the implication a casino was inside. He said for other businesses, the decision could limit their ability to grow.

“I’m concerned now — there is a precedent, but the fairness issue kind of gets me on this as well,” Kuntz said.

Planning and Building Director Tom Jentz said the department was following the lead the council had been establishing for years. He said the effort was to allow accessory casinos to exist, but be almost invisible.

Council member Phil Guiffrida read a portion of the council’s zoning ordinance, which states accessory casinos can’t display outside messages or symbols “intended to attract the attention that a casino was on the site.”

“We’ll go black-and-white on this,” Guiffrida said. “We passed it.”

He said while he understood businesses’ concerns, the measure was a historical compromise that should not be broken.

When the accessory casino ordinance was being considered, there were several council members against the idea of accessory casinos. It was passed to help restaurant owners during the shoulder season. The sign ban was to avoid making Kalispell look like a casino town, Guiffrida said.

He cited the Town Pump as a good example of that compromise, which was supported after hours of public comment and council discussions.

“How we got here is important, and we just can’t forget everything we went through,” he said.

After learning the background, Kluesner said he was still concerned for new businesses but saw which way the council was leaning.

Kuntz said learning the history of the decision changed his mind.

“I get it and it makes sense, although I feel the pinch of the business in front of us here, I feel the weight of the historical record,” Kuntz said. “Though I still feel bad.”

ALSO at Monday’s meeting, the council passed a resolution to update the urban renewal plan for South Kalispell.

While the plan update addresses options for redeveloping the Kalispell City Airport and surrounding land and neighborhoods, it does not determine the airport’s fate.

The options surrounding the airport include: keep the facility as is; close the airport; expand and maintain the airport to Federal Aviation Administration standards to receive federal funding; incorporate the airport into an airport authority; or privatize the airport.

The South Kalispell Plan amendment passed with a 6-2 vote, with council members Sandy Carlson and Kari Gabriel voting against it.

Carlson said while she understood the plan was a guideline for what could happen in the future, she voted against the proposal because one of the options includes closing the airport.

“It was a vote based on principle,” she said. “After hearing from a lot of people, I feel like a lot of the community is not ready to give up on the airport yet.”

Reporter Katheryn Houghton may be reached at 758-4436 or by email at khoughton@dailyinterlake.com.