Amid a flurry of votes indicating a mix of resolve and hesitation, the City Council on Monday night approved Stelling Engineers as the engineer of record for Kalispell City Airport.

But they stopped short of authorizing a new environmental assessment or any other consulting work related to the future of the airport.

“I think it’s time to move forward,” council member Randy Kenyon said. “We’re not making a commitment to have Stelling [carry out work]. We’ve had hundreds of questions asked, we’ve had hundreds of comments, we’ve had a lot of meetings and we have our meeting next week.”

The council will dedicate its Feb. 8 work session to an in-depth discussion on the airport. It will be broadcast live on local cable Channel 9 and streamed on the city’s Web site, www.kalispell.com. It also will be available for viewing any time on the site under Meetings on Demand.

Plans for the airport have been the focus of a widening rift in the community between those concerned with noise, safety and location and those supporting the airport’s economic benefits for business, emergency services and tourism.

In question Monday night was whether the council would agree that Stelling, headquartered in Great Falls, should be the city’s airport consultant. Robert Peccia and Associates, headquartered in Helena, was the only other firm to submit a statement of qualifications. Both firms have branch offices in Kalispell.

The decision was tabled twice since first being introduced last November, giving time for a series of public meetings as the city works through scenarios on the airport’s future.

Along with its recommendation to qualify Stelling, the city staff drew up a proposed contract between Stelling and the city. Its provisions would go into play only when the council directs City Manager Jane Howington to carry out specific work.

The contract lays out the scope of work, compensation and city obligations. A listing of basic services includes provisions for land acquisition and environmental services, among other items. A list of nine task orders drills down on specifics for identified tracts of land, an update of the 2002 environmental assessment, and design, bidding and construction on such work items as a runway, terminal building, fueling system and restoration and reclamation of previously developed airport property.

“Last fall when you started this you were only going in one direction — to expand and get FAA money,” Pauline Sjordahl told the council, cautioning them not to “put the cart before the horse.” She is a member of the Quiet Skies group opposed to airport impacts.

“Think of what all this situation is about in 2010, not in 2005, 6, 7, 8,” she continued. Don’t “be pressured to put somebody’s name in before you know what you’re doing.”

Peter Gross, a pilot and airport business owner, urged the council to approve Stelling.

“You have heard a lot of emotion and a lot of unqualified facts by unqualified individuals,” he said. “This is the appropriate time to hire a qualified individual to give firm, hard answers to firm, hard questions.”

Jim Atkinson opened discussion with his motion to qualify Stelling and move forward with a new environmental assessment.

Bob Hafferman objected and eventually moved to table the decision for a third time.

“As far as the qualifications of Stelling I have no problem,” he said. “As far as the contract which is before us tonight, I have a problem. We are at square one, but it looks like we already have got our mind made up.”

Duane Larson said he shared many of Hafferman’s concerns, but urged the council to move ahead by qualifying Stelling and then dive into details next Monday.

Kari Gabriel confirmed that each task order must be approved by the council before Stelling carries it out or gets paid for it.

Hafferman’s motion to table was defeated when it drew support only from Mayor Tammi Fisher and council member Wayne Saverud.

Jeff Zauner moved to amend Atkinson’s motion by removing the environmental assessment decision and focusing on Stelling as the airport consultant. That drew support from Kenyon, Larson, Gabriel and Fisher.

A second attempt by Hafferman to table action failed when Fisher and Saverud again were the only supporters.

Finally, Stelling was approved as the airport consultant when Kenyon, Larson, Zauner, Atkinson and Gabriel supported the move.