Zone change requested for Whitefish housing project

A proposed zone change on property near the railroad viaduct in Whitefish is the latest step in the Whitefish Housing Authority’s plan to develop an affordable-housing project using federal tax credits.

Homeword, the Missoula-based nonprofit that is working in tandem with the housing authority, is asking the Whitefish Planning Board on Thursday to consider a zone change on a tract of land at 530 Edgewood Place from limited commercial to high-density multifamily residential zoning. A public hearing will be held at 6 p.m. at Whitefish City Hall.

The project, proposed off Wisconsin Avenue on property once populated by mobile homes near the railroad, is one of eight finalists chosen to move forward to housing tax-credit applications through the Montana Board of Housing. It includes up to 38 affordable one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments.

Up to six projects in Montana will receive the tax credits in November and will be ready to break ground on new developments in the spring of 2019. Whitefish Housing Authority Executive Director Lori Collins recently said the Whitefish application was ranked third highest among the finalists, largely because of the financial commitment made not only by the property owners but also the city of Whitefish and the Whitefish Housing Authority.

The application process is on track for completion by Aug. 27.

In other business, the Planning Board will hold a public hearing on a request by Carolina Homes for preliminary-plat approval to develop a nine-lot subdivision on undeveloped property along Whitefish Avenue near Mountain Mall.

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