The Whitefish City Council tonight will zero in on a game plan to address how to manage a growing number of tourists in the resort town.

A public hearing will be held before the council considers a resolution adopting the Whitefish Sustainable Tourism Management Plan.

Three years ago the council held a work session with the Whitefish Convention and Visitors Bureau to discuss development of a tourism master plan. A steering committee was formed to develop a long-term plan that provides assurances that “community-based economic development, promotion, and conservation are beneficial to all,” according to the council staff report.

The city of Whitefish and visitors bureau contracted with consultants, Applied Communications and Hingston Roach Group, in 2019 to collect data, facilitate public meetings and talk to stakeholder groups to develop a plan that includes implementation action items.

“There is concern that too much visitation will diminish the quality of life that the community values, and that visitors find so attractive,” the plan’s executive summary states. “The purpose of this plan is to promote sustainable community-based tourism development that is beneficial to community members, employees and visitors.”

To that end, the plan is built around three pillars — community character, livability and community engagement.

It outlines several high priority, issue-oriented actions, including:

• Short-Term Rentals: Enforce, educate, zoning for parking, incentives for long-term rentals.

• Recycling: Research and expand opportunities for recycling, support local recycling businesses, and reduce overall waste.

• Funding: Legislature outreach to secure funding for various programs in 2021 Legislative session.

• Wildfire: Emergency preparedness, education, outreach, coordination, firesafe best practices.

• Transportation: Transit, park-n-ride, employee parking permits, bicycle and pedestrian facilities.

The committee is recommending that a standing committee be formed to work on the identified action items in the plan, as well as work to address the long-term impacts of COVID-19 on Whitefish’s tourism economy in conjunction with the city and visitors bureau.

While there is no immediate fiscal impact associated with adopting the Sustainable Tourism Management Plan, implementation will require staff time and, in some cases, investment by the city and WCVB for education and outreach, the council staff report notes.

IN OTHER business, the council will hold a public hearing to consider an emergency ordinance providing for remote meeting of the council, city boards and committees, and waiving a second reading the proposed ordinance.

In early June the city returned to in-person City Council meetings. “Many, if not most, other cities within Montana continue to hold meetings remotely,” the staff report notes. While the city has taken steps to provide social distancing at council meetings, “a few meetings were attended by so many individuals that social distancing was extremely difficult to maintain,” the staff report states. “Additionally, several individuals at such meetings did not comply with Governor Bullock's face covering mandate even though Flathead County had, and continues to have, more than four confirmed and active cases of COVID-19.”

City officials, staff, committee members and local citizens have expressed concern about attending public meetings given the difficulties associated with social distancing and attendees not wearing masks.

“It is further anticipated that city staff and citizens may be increasingly reluctant to attend public meetings during the upcoming flu season,” the report adds.

The proposed ordinance provides that council meetings be held remotely via WebEx with an opportunity for public participation. It also allows city boards and committees to hold remote meetings upon a majority vote.

The ordinance also encourages the public to provide written comments in advance of the meeting, limits public comment to three minutes per individual during WebEx meetings, and provides that the city clerk read the names and addresses of individuals who have provided written comment and state whether such individual supports or opposes the issue.

The council meeting begins at 7:10 p.m. at Whitefish City Hall.