Columbia Falls postpones decision on subdivision

After a meeting that went past midnight Tuesday, the Columbia Falls City Council held off on making a decision on a proposed 180-unit rental complex on land just east of the Flathead River.

Florida-based developer Rishi Kapoor is asking for city approval of the complex on 22 acres on the north side of U.S. 2, just east of the river.

Kapoor is CEO of Location Acquisitions, part of Location Ventures, out of Coral Gables, Florida. He is proposing 99 single family attached homes in 3 and 4-unit buildings, 81 apartment units, a private clubhouse, a public park, green space and on-street parking.

The land is currently a 10-acre parcel and a 12-acre parcel, both of which have long served as horse pastures. The land is wet and contains a manmade pond and host of wetlands. Borings in a geotechnical report found the water table to be just over 2 feet below the surface.

The developers are asking for a zone change from CSAG-5 and CSAG-10 (Suburban Agricultural) with a 5 and 10-acre minimum lot size to a proposed zoning of CR-4 (Urban Residential) zoning. A planned unit development overlay would allow for just under 8 units an acre.

About 55% of the development would be open space, but critics previously noted that about half of that was wetlands or the pre-existing man-made pond.

The Columbia Falls City-County Planning Board in a previous meeting slapped a negative recommendation on the project.

Monday’s lengthy meeting included a parade of experts and laypeople who spoke out against the development, claiming it would harm wetlands, cut off a key wildlife corridor and create dangerous traffic issues. They also were skeptical that the development would help Columbia Falls residents, as the projected rents — about $2 a square foot by Kapoor’s previous reckoning, would be too high for most people in Columbia Falls to afford.

All but two people spoke out against the development. One woman, Jeannie DiCarlo spoke in favor the project, but she is the real estate agent selling the property, according to the large sign out front. Another man spoke in favor of it as well, saying that his son had a good job and he needed housing.

The vast majority of speakers said they were not against high density housing, but this was the wrong location for it.

This is not the only development that Location Ventures has plans for in the area. Kapoor is also seeking a zone change on 112 acres of farmland less than a half mile to the east. That land is under county jurisdiction however. Kapoor is asking that the zoning on that tract of land be changed from agricultural to R-1 residential, which would allow up to one home per acre.

Council did close the public hearing, so at the next meeting, no more public testimony will be taken, Mayor Don Barnhart said.

He also said City Council would have no contact with the developer between now and the next meeting.

City staff said they did not have a firm date on when the meeting would be held. It will likely be April 10 or April 17, City Manager Susan Nicosia said after the meeting, but they had to check about venue availability.

The meeting, which also saw a regular City Council meeting, was held in the Columbia Falls Junior High to accommodate the large crowd, which numbered more than 100.

The video of the meeting will be posted on the Hungry Horse News' YouTube page.