Kalispell City Council on Monday appeared in favor of moving forward with plans to build a larger garage for the city's burgeoning fleet of vehicles and other equipment.

The existing garage located just south of Legends Stadium allows the majority of repair and maintenance work — jobs like fixing headlights and overhauling engines — to be performed by city workers. A new mechanic was hired this year, bringing the garage workforce to four. 

The mechanics service more than 325 pieces of equipment across several departments, ranging from emergency vehicles to garbage trucks.  

But the facility has run out of space needed to support the volume of repairs necessary to keep the city’s growing fleet of vehicles running, according to city officials.  

Public Works Director Susie Turner said that building a 13,500-square-foot garage fitted with three repair bays, a fluids service bay, a dedicated welding bay and taller ceilings should accommodate the city’s fleet for at least the next 30 years.  

The old garage will be repurposed to house the city's eight-person sewer crew. Like other sections of Kalispell Public Works, the sewer team is bursting at the seams in its current office, according to Turner.  Other Public Works personnel could also move into the old garage.  

Council on Nov. 10 gave the green light to schedule a public hearing on whether to allocate $600,000 of carry-over cash from fiscal year 2026’s general fund to begin planning for the new facility 

The project is estimated to cost $6 million. Turner suggested securing a loan for either of the two funding options she suggested to Council.  

The garage currently operates through an internal service fund supported by several city departments that use the garage services, such as police, fire and parks and recreation. The first option would be to have each department put more money into the pot to fund the new garage over the next 10 or 20 years.  

But pulling more money from each department will take away from other priorities — a concern expressed by Councilor and Mayor-elect Ryan Hunter. 

For instance, street maintenance projects would be reduced for up to two decades to support the garage project, Turner said.  

The second option would be to build a new garage somewhere within the west side tax increment financing district, which Turner said generates enough funds in one year to support building the new garage. 

Mayor Mark Johnson warned that, philosophically, tax increment financing funds should be used to reinvest in the tax base. Turner said that the funds have been used for public infrastructure in the past.   

Council did not give a clear indication of which option they preferred but will deliberate the options further at a future work session.   

At the end of Monday’s meeting, the mayor-elect extended his gratitude to voters and thanked his opponents in the race for running strong campaigns alongside him. Hunter also accepted Johnson’s offer to help with the transition.  

Reporter Jack Underhill can be reached at 758-4407 and [email protected].