Whitefish looks at small subdivision in southern part of city

Whitefish City Council on Monday will consider whether to approve a 24-lot subdivision.

The proposal is for a subdivision on just over 7 acres to be accessed off U.S. 93 via Pheasant Run and a newly constructed section of Baker Avenue.

City Council meets at 7:10 p.m. at City Hall, 418 E. Second St.

The applicant, Pheasant Run LLC, is proposing 21 residential lots on the west side of Baker Avenue with a new looped public right-of-way. The lots on the western portion of the subdivision range in size from 6,180 to 13,654 square feet in size.

Nineteen of the lots are sized to accommodate either single-family or two-family units. Net density would be from about 5 to 10 units per acre.

In addition, in the southeast corner, a 10,800-square-foot park is planned.

On the east side of Baker Avenue, three lots with business district zoning are planned with access onto Baker. The lots would be about 13,000 square feet in size.

A 30-foot wide right-of-way is proposed in the northeast corner of the development to connect to Akers Lane, a private access easement that provides access to three commercial lots and U.S. 93.

At full build-out, the subdivision is expected to generate about 440 daily vehicular trips. The project is expected to construct a portion of the Baker Avenue extension, which will help to facilitate improved transportation circulation on the west side of U.S. 93 once the entire road is completed, the planning staff report notes.

The applicant is also proposing to pay a fee toward the increase in traffic through the Akers Lane and U.S. 93 intersection for a future signal.

TWO OTHER items are also on the agenda for the evening.

Council will look at an ordinance rezoning about 9.9 acres of land located at 625 Lund Lane. The change would rezone the property from county one-family residential to city one-family residential.

The Whitefish Fire chief is also asking Council to award a contract with Northern Rockies Fire for a fire engine. The contract is in the amount of $693,214.

The Fire Department budgeted about $240,000 for the purchase, but Fire Chief Joe Page notes that the entire industry continues to see huge price jumps for equipment. Reserves are recommended to be used to cover the shortage for the one-time capital purchase.

The current fleet of engines includes one each from the years 2014, 1997 and 1995. The National Fire Protection Association recommends that apparatus greater than 15 years old be placed in reserve status and removed from service at 25 years old, Page notes.

DURING A work session beginning at 5:30 p.m., Council is set to hear a presentation from the Montana Facility Finance Authority introducing the C-PACE, or Commercial Property Assessed Capital Enhancements, program.

The program allows for local governments to establish a C-PACE district thereby allowing commercial building owners to apply for financing for energy efficiency projects and use a special property tax assessment to repay the loan from the project.

Then at 6:15 p.m., Council is set to discuss marijuana retail regulations. Council in February adopted interim zoning that prohibits new marijuana facilities for six months to give Council time to study whether to make changes to its regulations around such shops.

The work session is designed to help identify specific problems with the existing regulations and provide direction to city staff to make changes to the ordinance. Some city councilors have expressed concerns about the proliferation of dispensaries throughout town, and raised concerns about the distancing requirement in relation to schools and churches.

Since December 2021, Whitefish has issued 11 conditional use permits for marijuana shops. Five are open for business.

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