The Montana Department of Transportation sent out the Requirement for Qualifications for contractors to redesign the Foy’s Lake Road roundabout on Wednesday. Soliciting input from contractors is a major step forward in the process to remove the roundabout and reconstruct the intersection, which could see construction starting as early as this fall.

“There won’t be a roundabout on the bypass [at Foy’s Lake],” promised John Schmidt, district construction engineer with the Montana Department of Transportation.

The Foy’s Lake Road roundabout originally was installed as an interim project based on funding availability. Now, the state and the city of Kalispell are using a Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development (BUILD) grant to redesign the interchange on the U.S. 93 Alternate Route.

By June, the state will select the contractor and designer for the project, and this team will work together to design the new interchange based in part on community input.

“They propose to us what the intersection will look like,” Schmidt explained. “They’re going to round it out. We don’t know what it will look like.”

Katie Klietz with Big Sky Public Relations, the public relations firm working with MDT on the project, added, “we’re trying to be as receptive as possible to the community’s input.”

The BUILD grant, which supplies 75% of the project funding, requires contractors and designers to work together to design the project. Schmidt said this process “encourages innovation” and helps to “expedite the process.”

With this process, Bob Vosen, Department of Transportation District Administrator for the Missoula District, said there’s “more overlap” between the contractors and designers. He also explained this setup helps everyone involved move through the design and construction more quickly.

The rest of the funding for the approximately $15 million to $20 million initiative will come from federal and state funds through the National Highways Program.

The Foy’s Lake Roundabout project is separate from the state’s efforts to redesign intersections at Airport Road and Basecamp Drive on the southern-most section of the bypass. Those projects are fully funded through the National Highways Program, rather than BUILD grants, and are expected to be under construction starting in 2024.

“It’s convoluted,” Schmidt acknowledged, but he clarified the BUILD grant creates a separate avenue for funding, design and construction than other projects.

A public listening session in March will help solidify the Foy’s Lake project. By that time, potential contractors and designers will be narrowed to a shortlist, and these teams will present ideas and gather public input at the listening session.

Klietz said this is the first time the state has used this planning process, so it remains to be seen how the collaborative effort will play out.

Reporter Bret Anne Serbin may be reached at bserbin@dailyinterlake.com or 758-4459.