Schools consider new site north of town

Kalispell Public Schools officials are looking at the possible purchase of a school site north of town.

During a facility planning meeting Wednesday, Superintendent Mark Flatau said the district is talking with a landowner about potentially buying a 25-acre parcel of land.

The property is west of Whitefish Stage Road in the vicinity of Easthaven Baptist Church, Flatau said, and would potentially be the site of additional elementary schools.

The district is in the middle of long-term facility planning to accommodate growing enrollment.

Flatau said the landowner approached the district about a year ago.

“We’re very grateful they are open to discussions on selling a 25-acre parcel,” Flatau said.

Kalispell Planning and Building Director Tom Jentz said this was an exciting opportunity for Kalispell.

“The owner probably has a master plan for about 400 to 600 housing units,” Jentz said. “You’re talking about the next phase of Kalispell right there.

According to Jentz, “They realize the magic of putting a school there to kick-start development. It’s got potential to be a phenomenal neighborhood. You can see Edgerton [School] all over again in a good way.”

If the district is able to secure the property, it would complement any facility plans for a 25-acre property the district already owns south of town on Airport Road. Voters approved that $420,000 land purchase in November 2014.

Participants in Wednesday’s meeting zeroed in on an elementary building configuration for planners to refine that would utilize two school sites.

The scenario involves constructing one new building for grades kindergarten through fifth plus a new sixth- through eighth-grade building at one location. The option also includes constructing a new kindergarten- through fifth-grade building at a second site the district would need to acquire.

Planners Tom Heinecke of Morrison-Maierle and Steve L’Heureux of L’Heureux Page Werner provided a $63.6 million cost estimate to complete the project, including purchasing property.

Flatau said two elementary schools wouldn’t need to be built “right off the bat, but you would need them during that time span to meet that goal of the 2030 projections,” Flatau said.

If enrollment grows by 2 percent annually, this scenario was projected to provide enough space to accommodate enrollment growth before it was projected to reach a capacity of 450 students per building in 2034.

If the buildings were “super sized” to accommodate up to 550 students, an additional $2.9 million would need to be tacked on to construction costs and only provide an additional year before reaching capacity.

What is absent from this elementary proposal is an early childhood education center for kindergarten and preschool, an idea that had gained considerable traction in past facility planning meetings but was scrapped because planners noted capacity would be reached earlier then initial projections and there were concerns about building flexibility.

“Knowing that facility would hold 450 kids, we have roughly 330 kindergarteners right now — we have how many preschoolers — 50 — so with those numbers right there we are at 380,” Flatau said. “Probably in less than a five-year period that facility would be full.”

“It’s a great concept that could occur, but I think it reduces our flexibility to growth,” he added.

What could be done is to provide space in master plans for future preschool programs to be housed at new elementary buildings on the south, and if property is attainable, to the north side of town, L’Heureux said.

“Especially if it becomes a mandate,” L’Heureux said.

Currently the district only provides preschool to Special Education students.

“I think it behooves us, from a learning standpoint, to look at educating our next-most-needy kids,” Flatau said.

The next facility planning meeting is 6 p.m. March 2 at Kalispell Middle School. Planners expect to present cost estimates on several high school building concepts as well as make decisions on where to house vocational, career and technical programs.

Hilary Matheson is a reporter for The Daily Inter Lake. She may be reached at 758-4431 or hmatheson@dailyinterlake.com.