Letters to the editor Oct. 17
Be cautious of incumbents
With the City Council elections coming up soon, I wanted to remind Kalispell voters of recent votes by the 3 incumbents for the Kalispell City Council. The City Council unanimously approved a high density development along West Spring Creek Road between 2 Mile Drive and 3 Mile Drive. This will consist of 650 apartments and rowhouses that will be 45 feet tall, on agricultural land surrounded by single family homes, with the tallest existing building at about 20 feet tall.
The Sunday, Oct. 15, newspaper contained an editorial by Sen. Forrest Mandeville, and Sen. Jeremy Trebas, touting the legislature’s recent efforts to increase housing. It states:”There are two main approaches to doing so: massive new developments that eat up agricultural land and forever transform the rural character of Montana, or encouraging more houses to be built within already developed cities. As millennials who don’t want to see our children grow up in an unrecognizable Montana made up of concrete jungles, we favor the latter approach. Three of the Legislature’s biggest housing bills were written to build more housing without causing urban sprawl.”
They are talking about infill in developed urban areas and making it possible to build apartments in commercial zones.
That all makes perfect sense, but It is obvious the City Council missed the boat in this area., Columbia Falls, Whitefish, and Flathead County have shown some thoughtful decision making in regards to land use. It is hard to understand what is wrong with Kalispell in this regard. This development did not comply with either the growth policy or the zoning regulations and required a zone change and height variance to be approved.
To those of you who are unconcerned because it’s not your neighborhood, let me just say, look out , next year it could be your neighborhood. You might be better served by voting out the incumbents.
— Diane Etter, Kalispell
Hunter’s leadership
In three short years we have seen rapid growth, doubling of the price of housing, and increased economic disparity resulting in what is now a 12% poverty rate in Flathead County; and through all this I am so thankful for the dedicated work of Ryan Hunter on our City Council.
Ryan brings a commonsense, solutions-oriented approach. Advocating for a walkable, affordable Kalispell where our children will be able to stay and live when they are grown.
I have had many roles working with underserved and at risk youth in the Flathead. I see more working families priced out of their apartments and moving into their cars, whole families renting out a single room of a mobile home, and families moving to the edge of town into structures without utilities. I see teens aging out of foster care who can’t afford what is now the normal price of $800/month for a small, single-room apartment in a converted hotel room that lacks a kitchen or sink.
How are people supposed to make it here? The truth is many can’t — including hardworking people who have been here their whole lives. With leadership on council like Ryan Hunter we have a chance for solutions for a strong working class and workforce housing to keep Kalispell the place we all know and love.
— Mandy Gerth, Kalispell