Road work ahead: Major infrastructure projects gain steam in 2025

Several transportation projects are in motion across the Flathead, with more progress planned in 2025. Glacier Park International Airport is moving full steam ahead with the next phase of its expansion project, West Reserve Drive in Kalispell is being rebuilt with additional traffic lanes and Columbia Falls is in the first stages of a multi-million-dollar road reconstruction project.  

The state Department of Transportation is in for a busy year. Partnering with the city of Kalispell, the state agency is widening West Reserve Drive between Hutton Ranch Road and Whitefish Stage.  The city hired Columbia Falls-based contractor Schellinger Construction to lead the project.  

Improvements include expanding the major collector from three to five lanes by including a center turn lane. Sidewalks will also be built on the Stillwater River bridge as well as a shared-use path. Dedicated turn lanes, signals and concrete surfacing will also be installed at the intersections of Hutton Rand Road and Whitefish Stage Road.  

The road should be open and operational by the end of 2025, said John Schmidt, the transportation department’s Missoula District construction engineer. 

The expansion project, aimed at curbing increased traffic along the thoroughfare, began in October. 

In 2023, the city received a $25 million grant for the rebuild effort through the Biden administration’s Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. About $1.44 million from the state’s SAFER Fund went toward the project as well. 

EVERY YEAR, Kalispell Public Works staff identifies streets that need tending to focus projects on, according to Deputy Public Works Director Keith Haskins. Anticipated for next year, the city plans to lay new asphalt over several downtown roads, including First Avenue to Second Avenue West and Seventh Avenue East North to East Idaho Street. 

The city also plans to bid for a path extension along Four Mile Drive this winter with construction to start in the spring. The project would be funded by a state Department of Transportation grant and include road improvements and a sidewalk along Four Mile Drive from the intersection of Fox Glove Drive to Champion Way. 

A study called for traffic calming measures on the roadway, such as traffic signs signals, a speed hump and raised crosswalk.   

Traffic calming measures along East Oregon Street are also slated for next year after traffic studies reported excessive speed on the road accompanied with resident complaints. The project will be funded by the awarded Safe Streets for All demonstration grant along with matching funds.   

Haskins said the project may stoke support for a larger grant to address Main Street and First Avenue East and West.   

With a flood of new subdivisions hitting the market in 2024, almost 2 miles of new streets were added to the city, according to Haskins. The roads are paid for and constructed by the developer before being handed over to the city. Roads were built at the Stillwater Bend subdivision, the Village at Eagle Valley Ranch, Parkland Meadows and Mountain View. 

Completed this year, Evergreen saw new sidewalks along U.S. 2, no longer forcing children going to and from school in Evergreen to walk along the highway. 

GOING NORTH, Columbia Falls will reconstruct 1.3 miles of roadway, install 1.7 miles of sidewalks, add 1 mile of multi-use pathways and intersection and parking improvements to improve accessibility of the downtown area. 

The project will rebuild 13th Street West in front of Columbia Falls High School and Fourth Avenue West adjacent to Glacier Gateway Elementary. There will also be improvements on Seventh Street West from Nucleus Avenue to Fourth Avenue West.  

The $10 million project is being funded through the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability grant program. 

Construction is expected to begin in October. Columbia Falls Public Works Director Shawn Bates said he aims to schedule construction in front of the schools during the summer so as not to interfere with classes.   

The past year was a busy one for road improvements in Whitefish, said Craig Workman, the city’s public works director.  

Karrow Avenue was reconstructed from West Seventh Street to U.S. 93 with curb and gutters, decorative streetlights and a shared-use path. 

“Totally transformed that corridor,” Workman said.  

The resort-tax funded project amounted to $2.4 million. 

Other city projects included maintenance on Greenwood Drive, West Lakeshore Drive, East Fourth Street and intersection pavement repairs along U.S. 93, said Workman.  

Looking into the new year, East Sixth Street will be reconstructed from Spokane Avenue to Pine Avenue, according to Workman.   

Workman said projects are funded through the streets portion of the resort tax and the city’s street budget.  

Driving up to Whitefish Mountain Resort, skiers can see new guardrails and fresh pavement on Big Mountain Road.  Initial work began in August 2023 and was completed in October 2024. 

TWO BRIDGES will be getting some much-needed attention this upcoming year.  

The replacement of Sportsman’s Bridge on Montana 82 in Bigfork is expected to begin in early fall. The narrow bridge built in 1955 was not designed to hold the heavy traffic that came with the county’s boom in population, according to state transportation department. 

The new bridge will be built on the south side of the existing one and will feature two 12-foot travel lanes and two 10-foot shoulders. 

The almost $48 million project is being majority funded through the Bridge Investment Program, a federal program aimed at addressing bridges in poor condition, according to the state’s consultant project engineer Mark Studt. 

Another project the state has in the works is replacing the Bridge Street Bridge in Bigfork.  

“We’re going to be busy in the valley next year for sure,” said Schmidt, the engineer with the state transportation department.  

Most of the projects are being primarily funded through federal grant programs. 

LOOKING TO THE SKIES, Glacier Park International Airport has been undergoing a historic terminal expansion project as the Flathead Valley population grows, and the tourist hotspot gets hotter. The project is expected to be completed in May 2026.  

The airport completed part of the project’s first phase in March, which featured the county’s first pair of escalators. The moving stairs take travelers from security up to the three new boarding gates each adorned with jet bridges. 

Travellers have also been able to cozy up to the fireplace or get a drink and some grub at the Goat Haunt Saloon. The Flathead Mercantile shop and the On The Fly concession stand opened this year, as well.  

Through the rest of 2024, the terminal has been getting a face-lift at the front of the building. By late spring and early summer, airport director Rob Ratkowski expects renovations to the ticketing lobby and baggage claim to be completed.  

The airport’s central core remains under construction and will eventually connect all facets of the facility, from baggage claim to ticketing.  

“The true flow of the building will be back,” Ratkowski said.  

Phase two of the project also kicked off in 2024, which will see renovations to the south end of the building including an additional gate and baggage claim, which will not be open until 2026, Ratkowski said.  

So far, well over half of the project has been completed. Ratkowski expects the entire feat to cost around $168 million, which translates to about a $5 increase per ticket, he said. 

To mitigate the financial impact on passengers, the airport has accessed various streams of federal infrastructure funding mechanisms and through grants from the Federal Aviation Administration and Transportation Security Administration.  

In 2023, the airport welcomed 455,000 passengers. From the beginning of this year through November, the airport saw 471,000 passengers.   

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

    Construction continues on the central core area of the Glacier Park International Airport expansion project on Friday, Dec. 13. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
 Casey Kreider   

    Construction continues outside the entrance to Glacier Park International Airport on Friday, Dec. 13. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
 Casey Kreider  

    A piece of luggage is scanned inside the automated baggage handlng area at Glacier Park International Airport on Friday, Dec. 13. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
 Casey Kreider   

    A traveler walks between gates inside Glacier Park International Airport on Friday, Dec. 13. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
 Casey Kreider