Dog park, walking paths on south Kalispell wish list

Opinions are divided on what to do about Kalispell City Airport, but south Kalispell residents are clearer on a couple of points: They don’t want to become like north Kalispell and they would like a dog park.

Those preliminary conclusions come from study about the future of south Kalispell conducted by CTA Architects Engineers.

At an open house Wednesday on the South Kalispell Urban Renewal Plan, CTA staffers led a crowd of about 30 residents through a condensed version of the 70-page document.

CTA spent the last nine months accumulating data on Kalispell City Airport and other area airports and taking survey responses from residents through group meetings, open houses and its website. The firm took in about 100 responses overall.

What they found is a call from residents for community walking paths, commercial and residential development and a potential dog park.

“What surprised me the most was the traction behind the dog park,” Senior CTA Planner Stephanie Ray said.

Ray said several respondents also were definite about limiting the expansion of big box stores into south Kalispell.

“We heard a number of times they don’t want it to look like north Kalispell,” she said.

Wayne Freeman, project manager for CTA, said opinions at Wednesday’s meeting were reflective of the survey responses received over the last year. There was no side overwhelming the other about whether to keep the airport in operation or phase it out completely.

“There’s no compelling reason to do one thing over another,” Freeman said. “That airport has been there for 70-plus years and it’s been built around, like so many other airports.”

Among the five airport alternatives in the South Kalispell Urban Renewal Plan, requesting funding from the Federal Aviation Administration brought out the most questions from Kalispell residents.

According to Freeman, the minimal amount of work needed on the airport to come into FAA compliance and qualify for funding would be moving the taxiway about five feet farther away from the runway. But the option for funding would require entirely reopening the conversation between the city and the FAA, he said.

“We’re not looking to expand the airport but to see what the FAA would be willing to fund,” Freeman said. “The thing to remember, though, is that taking FAA funding requires a 20-year commitment to operation.”

In 2013, Kalispell residents voted against expanding the city airport’s runway to qualify for FAA funding.

Several people on Wednesday were concerned that the FAA wouldn’t fund anything short of a full-scale expansion, but Freeman maintained that the federal agency had been receptive to the idea.

“We’ve talked with the FAA. The city would have to step forward and engage with them,” Freeman said. “It has not been shot down at all to look at a downsized project.”

If the airport becomes eligible for FAA funding, the city would receive $150,000 a year for capital improvement projects.

Other airport options present more upfront expenses rather than immediate financial relief.

Freeman said the city would lose approximately $1 million over five years and an additional $300,000 each year if the city decided to keep operating the airport with general fund money. The majority of expenses would be maintenance costs, which are ineligible for tax increment financing from the south Kalispell district.

If the city decided to sell the airport, the cost of lease buyouts on the property would reach nearly $3 million, but over time the property could be developed with tax increment financing and eventually generate revenue for the city and create jobs through private development.

Before requesting FAA funding, the city would be required to complete about $400,000 in maintenance updates to the tattered runway and move the taxiway.

Kalispell City Planning and Building Director Tom Jentz said the south Kalispell process is approximately 60 days away from action by the City Council and still open for public comment.

On Feb. 9, the City Planning Board will examine the overall plan, which includes options of a dog park, trail system and mixed commercial and residential development. On Feb. 10, the Kalispell Urban Renewal Agency will examine the airport options.

“We’re hoping to get enough information together so our council can make a reasonable direction to go with,” Jentz said. “If the council chooses a direction and we follow up on the direction, we might ultimately find out that direction didn’t work, but we have to get some forward movement with solving the problem. Then we would step back and look at another alternative.”

Considering so much time has passed since south Kalispell developed around the airport, Jentz said it’s clear that Kalispell residents are looking for more balance in their city.

“The core area was, what do we do with the railroad tracks? It used to be, what do we do with the bypass? North Kalispell is pretty much taking care of itself,” Jentz said. “This is a big step to taking care of issues that have been circling Kalispell for decades. It just takes time to absorb this and craft a solution.”

Residents with questions or comments can reach CTA planners at 222-0104, extension 1606, or the city Planning Department at 758-7940.

Reporter Seaborn Larson may be reached at 758-4441 or by email at slarson@dailyinterlake.com.