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Whitefish hotel expansion goes before City Council

HEIDI DESCH | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 2 months, 3 weeks AGO
by HEIDI DESCH
Heidi Desch is features editor and covers Flathead County for the Daily Inter Lake. She previously served as managing editor of the Whitefish Pilot, spending 10 years at the newspaper and earning honors as best weekly newspaper in Montana. She was a reporter for the Hungry Horse News and has served as interim editor for The Western News and Bigfork Eagle. She is a graduate of the University of Montana. She can be reached at [email protected] or 406-758-4421. | November 2, 2025 11:00 PM

A hotel along the Whitefish River is looking to expand by converting an office building on the same property into lodging.  

The Riverfront Hotel heads before the Whitefish City Council on Monday, requesting a conditional use permit to create nine units in the building to the south of the hotel located on Spokane Avenue.  

The units would be one- to three-bedroom suites that include full kitchens. The units would have access to the amenities in the main building.  

City Council meets at 7:10 p.m. at City Hall, 418 E. Second St. 

Regarding another business, Wild Coffee is requesting a conditional use permit to use a beer and wine license at its cafe on Central Avenue. The license was approved for use at a previous business, and the owner wants to transfer the license to the cafe.  

An update to the city’s architectural review standards also goes before Council. The city is changing the term formula retail to formula business in its standards.  

The change is being made to match a previously approved update to the city’s zoning code pertaining to formula business.  

During a work session at 6:15 p.m., an update on the Whitefish Rail Corridor Crossing Study is being presented.  

Whitefish in 2023 received federal funding to study railroad crossings in the city. The study is examining Birch Point Drive, State Park Road and East Second Street and the Wisconsin Avenue viaduct.  The objective is to evaluate the safety, roadway connectivity and the potential for improvements at the rail crossing locations.

Deputy Editor Heidi Desch may be reached at 406-758-4421 or [email protected].   


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