The Kalispell City Council took a step toward addressing homelessness during a meeting Monday night with the approval of two requests that pave the way for the Flathead Warming Center to open a permanent location on North Meridian Road.

The unanimous approval of the Warming Center’s requests comes on the heels of a boisterous work session last week when the Mayor’s Task Force on Homelessness presented a report — heavily criticized by local service providers — on the state of the city’s homeless population.

During a virtual meeting held via Zoom videoconference, the council unanimously granted a zoning text amendment that allows homeless shelters to be included in the B-1 (Neighborhood Business) zone with a conditional-use permit, and also OK’d a conditional-use permit request for a homeless shelter at 889 North Meridian Road.

The homeless shelter has a maximum capacity of 40 people and is only expected to operate for the coldest months of the year. The location, 889 North Meridian Road, was formerly an automotive repair shop.

The Flathead Warming Center set up a temporary shelter last winter in the basement of Christ Episcopal Church in downtown Kalispell to provide a safe, warm place for unhoused individuals to sleep in the city. The provisional shelter housed 105 unique individuals during its stint in the church basement.

Following that initiative, the Flathead Warming Center Board scoured the city for a permanent location and eventually settled on the North Meridian Road location.

Prior to Monday’s meeting, homeless shelters were not included in the list of approved uses for the city’s B-1 zone, “a commercial zone that includes a mix of uses at a neighborhood scale.” However, approved uses included group homes, residential care facilities, community centers, taverns and bars.

The City Council reportedly received a mix of written and verbal public comments on the text amendment from residents both for and against the proposal. During Monday’s meeting, however, there was only one public commenter who expressed opposition to the request.

Carmine Mowbray said she was worried nearby businesses would be “vulnerable to vagrancy” with the addition of homeless shelters in the B-1 zone. Mowbray is a Polson resident who owns the commercial building that houses Box of Rain Organic Garden Center and Lane’s Boot and Shoe Repair, at 763 and 771 North Meridian Road.

Six other public commenters spoke in favor of the text amendment, including Donnel O’Flynn, who served as the pastor at Christ Episcopal Church during the Warming Center’s occupation of the church basement. “They were excellent tenants,” O’ Flynn reported. “In every way, they were really great to work with.”

Subsequent to the unanimous approval of the text amendment, the council took up the conditional-use permit request that specifically grants the use of the property to the Flathead Warming Center. The permit includes stipulations that the nearby sidewalks be extended, as well as plans for exterior upgrades, including a courtyard where shelter guests would line up to be admitted.

Many of the public commenters who spoke in favor of the zone text amendment also voiced their support for the permit request. A total of eight people expressed their support Monday for the placement of the Warming Center, including Gina Benesh, the owner of a property that bordered the temporary site of the Warming Center last winter.

In her experience, Benesh said the Warming Center was a well-run organization that did not cause problems for neighbors like her, despite her initial concerns about living next to the shelter.

“My fears were unfounded,” Benesh said. “They did a spectacular job.”

Carmine Mowbray was once again the only person to provide verbal public comment against the location of the Warming Center. She reiterated, “there’s a real risk to the adjacent businesses.”

Nonetheless, the council unanimously approved the permit request.

The council also unanimously approved two development proposals: a preliminary plat request for Phases 2 and 5 of the Meadow’s Edge development in North Kalispell that encompasses 37 residential lots, and a Commercial Planned Unit Development Zoning Overlay for two vacant lots at 145 and 151 Snowline Lane.

Finally, the council approved the appointment of Noelle Barr, one of the new owners of the Kalispell Grand Hotel, to the Tourism Business Improvement District Board of Trustees.

Reporter Bret Anne Serbin may be reached at (406)-758-4459 or bserbin@dailyinterlake.com.