Whitefish Council looks at contract for viaduct improvement project

Whitefish City Council on Tuesday will consider an engineering contract for a list of proposed improvements to the viaduct over the BNSF railway tracks.

The proposed project for the Baker Avenue/Wisconsin Avenue viaduct has been long identified as a critical link to tie the north side of Whitefish to the downtown area on the south side of the viaduct, the city notes.

Due to the Presidents’ Day holiday on Monday, City Council meets on Tuesday at 7:10 p.m. at City Hall.

Council is set to vote on awarding a contract with WGM Group to complete the engineering design for the work. The city has budgeted $250,000 for the entire project.

The viaduct improvements is one of the major components of the city’s downtown business district master plan adopted in 2015. The plan identifies opportunities for increasing the vitality of downtown while outlining components to make that vision possible. It’s also included in the 2017 bike and pedestrian master plan as part of goals to create a connected network of bicycle and pedestrian facilities around the city.

To finance the project, the city applied for a Transportation Alternatives grant through the Montana Department of Transportation, but did not receive any funds.

However, Public Works Director Craig Workman in a memo to Council said the city had budgeted funds to cover its local share of the project and thus believes there are funds available for a portion of the project.

Work involves narrowing down the vehicular travel lanes on the viaduct to create a 12-foot wide multi-use trail on both sides of the roadway. This involves the replacement and relocation of the existing jersey barriers to bring them up to current standards.

Workman says the city is also optimistic that a more attractive barrier than the current concrete barriers can be installed.

The downtown master plan had envisioned a much larger project for the viaduct, but Workman said after staff reviewed the concept it found there were significant challenges with the design including adding large planter boxes with trees on the viaduct that would have contributed significant weight to the bridge and would not have provided an ideal situation for the long-term health of the trees.

ALSO ON the agenda, Council is set to consider a final design and authorization to go out for bids for the reconstruction of Edgewood Place and Texas Avenue. Construction began last summer on Edgewood and this would continue that work.

An ordinance amending the city’s zoning code is also on the agenda for the night. Council is set to consider an ordinance establishing a business transitional zoning district as a part of implementing the city’s Highway 93 South Corridor Plan.

The recently adopted highway corridor plan calls for the creation of a highway traditional zoning district for newly annexed properties in the area south of Highway 40 to ensure that properties at the entrance to Whitefish that annex into the city in the future are developed in a manner consistent with the city’s vision for that section of the corridor.

On Tuesday, Council is also set to vote on an ordinance that would amend conditions of the Trail View planned unit development. The change would allow the subdivision to reduce the number of deed-restricted units from 58, which is the entire single-family home subdivision, to 48 units. Meaning 10 units would become market-rate homes.

The developer of the subdivision says the request is being made because of challenges with the increased cost of construction, materials and labor that are delaying the building process and impacting the associated carrying costs.

Prior to the regular meeting, Council will hold a work session at 6 p.m., to discuss available zoning and possible locations for workforce housing. Council is also set to discuss employee housing issues and opportunities.

In addition to in-person at City Hall, the meeting is available to view and comment via Webex.

Instructions can be found on the city’s website at https://www.cityofwhitefish.org/.

Features editor Heidi Desch may be reached at 758-4421 or hdesch@dailyinterlake.com.