The Kalispell City Council is slowing down its push to enact a “first in, first out” sewer capacity allocation policy.

The policy was pitched last week and on the agenda for adoption Monday as the city confronts future capacity shortages in a major sewer line that runs along Meridian Road, with little or no money set aside for a fix.

A recent sewer analysis estimates that with existing sewage flows and sewer capacity promised for future development projects, one section of the line has enough unallocated capacity to accept sewage from only about 24 more houses.

That’s not enough capacity for projects that want and need more and are waiting in the wings, such as the 65-unit Meridian Apartments project that one local developer wants to build on a lot on Meridian Road.

The City Council pitched a policy that would take back unused sewer capacity that was promised to development projects if those sewer allocations expire at the state level.

In this case, the city would take back sewer capacity it promised to Bloomstone, a subdivision the city approved on Four Mile Drive.

That sewer capacity was allocated to Bloomstone but was never used as the project ground to a halt during the recession. Because the project was not completed within three years, that sewer allocation has expired with the state of Montana. With that expiration, Kalispell could now take that sewer capacity back and allocate it to other projects that want it, forcing Bloomstone to the back of the line.

City Attorney Charlie Harball said Kalispell has no policy governing what happens after its sewer allocations expire at the state level. “Things change, capacity changes,” Harball told the City Council on Monday. He used the example of a large project that comes into the city, secures lots of the city’s sewer capacity and then goes dormant for years. “You have to question, is that good policy for other people coming in, to have that capacity we cannot use?”

City officials estimate that in this case the move would free up enough capacity in the sewer line to last about two more years. But the City Council on Monday opted to take a longer look at the policy after hearing from representatives with Bloomstone.

“I don’t feel we’re ready for this,” council member Jeff Zauner said. Others on the City Council agreed. They voted 8-1 to table the issue and are anticipated to revisit it during a work session later this month.

Bob Hafferman voted against tabling the resolution. Hafferman said he thinks the city is heading down “a real slippery slope” with the policy and added he’s not convinced there are “insurmountable problems that cannot be solved.”

Jim Davis, project manager for the Bloomstone subdivision, questioned a policy where Kalispell would extend preliminary plats for projects such as Bloomstone but not their sewer allocations.

Davis said more than $2 million has been invested into utilities and infrastructure for Bloomstone.

“So really we’re feeling a little discouraged that we can be in the midst of active plat and have the rug yanked out from underneath us as far as [sewer] allocations go,” Davis said. “We have a year and a half to complete infrastructure and go to final plat, but how do we do that if we don’t have assurance that previously promised utilities are still there?”

Davis encouraged the City Council to take a longer look at the proposed policy to “figure out a way to make everyone happy.”

“We think we can come to agreement to bring new developments on and figure out how to keep intact what has already been done with big developments like ours,” he said.

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