Flathead County enters agreement on south Kalispell property for future jail

Flathead County is looking at a 114-acre piece of property south of Kalispell as a possible location for a future detention facility.

The county has entered into a buy-sell agreement on the property at 225 Snowline Lane with a purchase price of $3.9 million. Though not specifically designated as such, commissioners in approving the agreement on Oct. 10 alluded to the fact that the land is being considered for a long-discussed new jail.

Commissioner Pam Holmquist said the agreement is to examine the property further.

“The detention facility has been a huge project we’ve been looking at for years and land is getting more scarce and more expensive,” she said. “The sooner we can move forward with that the better. We’re ready to move forward with the land purchase and then move on to whatever the next step is. This property has a lot of potential for this.”

The closing date for the agreement is February 2024. County Administrator Pete Melnick said the purchase would use funding set aside for a future jail.

The property is owned by Bob King who in August brought it forward as a potential location for the county’s planned regional septage facility. Commissioners last month approved the purchase of 36.9 acres on Wiley Dike Road for that facility.

The property between Snowline Lane and Demersville Road includes a home, a garage and several outbuildings. Ashley Creek runs through the property that is zoned SAG-5 (suburban agriculture). Residential homes, along with agricultural and industrial uses are on nearby properties.

The agreement notes that the property would need to be annexed into the city and approved for connecting to city utilities.

The agreement approved the property purchase, and Commissioner Randy Brodehl was quick to point out that it’s considered an “exploratory agreement.”

“We haven’t decided yet what the use of that land will be,” he said. “We’re just looking at possibilities. We are running short of available land that is close to infrastructure. This fits into that very well. This is something that the county is going to need.”

The county has long dealt with a growing jail population. The county’s adult detention center was constructed in 1985 and has undergone multiple remodels.

Commissioners have held several meetings to discuss options for the county detention center. The county’s consultants in creating a needs assessment and master plan for the facility list preliminary estimates for the project at between $115 and $134 million.

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