Kalispell’s ongoing work to draft a core area revitalization plan for its run-down railroad corridor got a $31,500 boost in July from a grant from the Montana Department of Commerce.

The grant will help the city put together feasibility studies and cost estimates for some of the goals taking shape in the plan.

One of those goals is removing the railroad tracks that run through town and relocating the last two businesses that use them to the new Flathead County Rail Park at the city’s edge along Whitefish Stage Road.

The grant money comes from the Big Sky Trust Fund. It was applied for and secured by Montana West Economic Development.

“It adds to the money Kalispell already has put toward this and sort of leverages it to make sure we have a really good plan for how the city can move forward for the next 10 to 20 years,” said Kim Morisaki, manager of business development and special projects for the economic development organization.

The grant lets Kalispell hire a consultant to complete a market analysis for the 365-acre planning area and add a significant “feasibility component” to the revitalization plan. A request for qualifications for that work is expected to go out soon.

Katharine Thompson, Kalispell’s community development manager, said the grant is welcome news and will only add to the revitalization plan, on track to be completed by year’s end.

“We are very pleased to have this support from Montana West Economic Development for pursuing this grant on our behalf,” Thompson said. “It’s nice to leverage our other grant funds and stretch them further to accomplish more.”

The planning area runs along the railroad tracks, bordered by Washington Street to the north, First Street to the south and city limits to the east and west.

In addition to the market analysis, the consultant will be tasked with developing feasibility studies for various infrastructure improvements, the relocation of the two businesses that use the railroad tracks and the creation of a bike and pedestrian path in place of the tracks.

“We need to start putting some numbers to this,” Thompson said. “That’s another component of the overall core area plan and a critical component.”

Over the last several years, city staffers have interviewed more than 100 property owners in the planning area and held several open houses to solicit public input for the core area revitalization plan.

Once the city’s thriving industrial center, the planning area today is largely run-down and underutilized. About 19 acres of vacant land and empty buildings are scattered along the railroad tracks.

City staffers have put together maps of aging water and sewer lines, stretches of streets with no sidewalks and nearly two dozen potentially leaking underground storage tanks.

Removing the railroad tracks is one of the top revitalization priorities that has emerged from the process.

That’s something Kalispell has talked about doing for decades. But the recent launch of a new rail park where the two businesses that rely on the tracks could be relocated clears what was at least one major stumbling block.

Removing the tracks would free up land for high-density retail and residential development and bike and walking paths to make a more pedestrian-friendly core area.

The core area revitalization plan is not meant to dictate future development to property owners, but to serve as a guiding document that identifies potential reinvestment and redevelopment opportunities.

The effort so far has been funded by a $175,000 planning grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. That funding was awarded in conjunction with more than $1 million for the city to start a revolving loan fund and help property owners assess their potential Brownfield sites and clean up contamination if needed.

Reporter Tom Lotshaw may be reached at 758-4483 or by email at tlotshaw@dailyinterlake.com.