Herberger’s last week announced an ambitious expansion plan that will double the size of its store in Kalispell Center Mall. This is great news for the downtown corridor, and the beginning of some renewed economic vitality for the heart of Kalispell as the city’s core development plan becomes a reality.

It is important to remember that the Herberger’s expansion is being funded entirely by private dollars, but it would never have happened were it not for the vision of probably hundreds of community leaders who worked tirelessly over the last 30 years to find some way to move the historic railroad line out of Kalispell’s central business district. They were finally rewarded last year when the U.S. Department of Transportation awarded a $10 million TIGER grant to the city and its partners to build a new railroad industrial park at the east end of Kalispell. At last week’s Kalispell Chamber lunch, CHS detailed its plans to relocate to the rail park by 2018.

Once the railroad tracks are removed it will free up many hundreds of acres of prime real estate for urban development for the first time in more than 100 years. The entire area north of Center Street has the potential to be revitalized, and other amenities such as bike and walking trails also will add greatly to the city as a whole.

Imagine how attractive the area just north of Kalispell Center Mall will be when a pedestrian trail flows through the area where the tracks now hamstring development. The potential for additional shops and restaurants on both sides of the trail will be a drawing card for downtown.

Thanks to the visionary core redevelopment plan, companies like Herberger’s are now confident that they can invest in downtown Kalispell, and private investment by companies like Herberger’s is what makes a local economy succeed so that people can afford to live here.