Kalispell to begin work on Grandview Wells site

A portion of Grandview Drive will be closed from Wednesday through Thursday for work on the Grandview Wells site, according to Kalispell officials.

The closure is due to the delivery of 12 water treatment systems that are part of the city’s plan to mitigate forever chemicals, otherwise known as PFAS, currently found in four wells that supply drinking water to Kalispell. 

The road closure will be between Harrison Boulevard and Ponderosa Street. Temporary signs will be placed to direct traffic. 

The pipe reconfiguration and construction required to install the treatment systems in both wells at the Grandview site will lead to them being offline, said Public Works Director Susie Turner.  

Turner said that there should be little impact on the city’s access to water. She hoped to see the system operational by the end of August.  

In April, The Environmental Protection Agency set a limit on the concentration of PFAS present in drinking water at 4 parts per trillion. While officials detected forever chemicals at both Grandview Wells, the latest sampling conducted in July found that Grandview Well No. 2 contained PFAS around twice the established maximum level. 

Testing at Grandview Well No. 1 and the Armory Well also detected PFAS, but below the government limit. 

Kalispell is one of two communities in Montana to detect PFAS in its water supply. The other is Hamilton.  

Turner did not comment on the cost of the treatment system but said that it’s installation at Grandview is the first part of a multi-phase project. 

Turner said the goal is to eliminate PFAS in the drinking water supply by eventually replacing the contaminated wells. 

According to a city webpage updated in early August, $95,000 in funding has been secured, but an additional $10.8 million is pending from the Small Systems Emerging Contaminant Grant and Emerging Contaminant SRF Forgiveness loan.  

Jack Underhill can be reached at junderhill@dailyinterlake.com and 758-4407.