Kalispell City Council expected to again take up proposed Tronstad subdivisions

A pair of residential developments on Tronstad Road that have drawn the ire of neighbors will be back before Kalispell City Council on Monday night.  

Developers Jon Sonju and Frank Garner, two former lawmakers, are looking for planned unit development and preliminary plat approval for the Tronstad Meadows and Whitetail Crossing projects on 110.5 acres of land between U.S. 93 and Whitefish Stage Road. The two projects also require annexation into the city and developers are seeking low-density zoning designation for the land. 

Council meets at 7 p.m. in City Hall, 201 First Ave. E. 

Since their initial proposal, which included 25 additional lots and higher density zoning, was denied by Council in June, Sonju and Garner have returned to City Hall with a revised plan instituting landscape buffers and lower density lots on the property perimeter. 

The developments would see 355 single-family lots ranging from 6,000 to 12,000 square feet, with the largest being roughly 19,800 square feet. The plan calls for 140 lots to exceed 10,000 square feet and developers said they intended to provide starter lots for those entering the housing market.  

The Kalispell Planning Commission shepherded the developments onto Council after a contentious Oct. 8 meeting. 

During two and a half hours of public comment, neighbors voiced disapproval of the proposed projects. Many held concerns that Tronstad Road and the adjacent Whitefish Stage Road lacked the necessary infrastructure to accommodate the expected increase in traffic.  

A formal written protest of the subdivisions was submitted to the city Oct. 10 and signed by at least 25% of lot owners within 150 feet of the proposed zoning, according to city documents. 

Sonju and Garner agreed to fund improvements to the intersection at Tronstad Road and U.S. 93, a point of concern among neighbors. A July study conducted by Abelin Traffic Services for the developers determined the intersection would need a traffic signal.  

The developers’ commitment to funding some infrastructure improvements pushed Planning Commission members to vote in favor of the subdivision, as funding prior to development was unlikely to come from elsewhere.  

The Montana Department of Transportation, which would need to sign off on improvements at the intersection, typically requires an observed need prior to erecting a traffic signal, meaning the timeline for such an effort remains murky. 

Residents on and around Tronstad Road argued that it already presents a danger for drivers and pedestrians. They pointed to existing narrow lanes, speeding motorists, steep ditches and blind hills on the road. With winter on its way, neighbors also worried about ice-induced crashes. 

Still, the Abelin Traffic Services study determined Tronstad Road could accommodate the higher capacity of cars, which has a projected peak of up to 300 cars per hour per lane. 

That and other findings prompted nearby residents Dan and Ming Munzing to bring on traffic engineering and transportation planning service Greenlight Engineering to take a second look at the proposed subdivisions’ effect on the surrounding area. 

The report asserted that the developers failed to comply with city standards and that the development will not maintain an existing level of service on Tronstad Road as described by the Planning Commission.   

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