The Community Action Partnership of Northwest Montana recently unveiled its new RV Park in South Kalispell, but it still needs a conditional use permit to operate, say city planning staff.

The 10-space lot opened June 1 and lines the west side of the property that houses the nonprofit’s building at 1820 U.S. 93 S. The sites are intended for seasonal workers, travelers or those looking to stay longer term, helping expand the supply of affordable housing options, according to the nonprofit.  

But Community Action Partnership never obtained a conditional use permit needed to operate the facility, prompting some residents and a former city councilor to question how the RV park was allowed to open without city approval and whether Mayor Ryan Hunter’s ties to the organization created a conflict of interest.   

Although Community Action Partnership already obtained a license through the state, it was unaware that a city conditional use permit was also required, according to Development Services Director PJ Sorensen.  

Community Action Partnership did not respond to multiple requests for comment before press time.  

Before Community Action Partnership moved into its new digs, the building was the home of the Kalispell Elks Lodge, which started operating an RV park on the property in 1989, according to the city’s geographic information system hub.  

Owing to the amount of time between when the Elks-run RV park closed and Community Action Partnership relaunched it, its use as an RV Park could not be considered grandfathered in, Sorensen said.  

City staff were unaware of the effort to relaunch the park until after the nonprofit announced its opening. That’s when a resident submitted a complaint to City Hall, according to Hunter.  

Planning staff notified the nonprofit over a week ago that it needed a permit, Sorensen said. 

After Kalispell City Council adopted sweeping changes to the municipality's land use regulations to comply with the Montana Land Use Planning Act, conditional use permits are now reviewed and approved by staff rather than Kalispell City Council and the Planning Commission.  

Sorensen said he expects a permit to be approved within six to eight weeks as staff iron out the new administrative review process. 

FORMER CITY Councilor and Planning Commission President Chad Graham submitted a letter to City Hall on June 29 accusing Hunter of disregarding the Council’s ethics policy and creating conflicts of interest in regard to the RV park, though he did not cite any specific actions by the mayor.  

Local business owner Vaughn Penrod also lobbed a conflict of interest accusation at Hunter because of his involvement with Community Action Partnership. 

Hunter, who has served on the organization’s board for about a year, said he knew about the RV park but assumed nonprofit staff were working with city officials to ensure the project complied with local regulations. 

“I knew about it, but made that assumption. I had no communication with staff whatsoever about it,” Hunter said.  

Hunter said he learned the nonprofit had not obtained the required permit during a board meeting held the same day city staff notified Community Action Partnership of the issue.  

He disagreed that there was any conflict of interest and said he has long disclosed that he sits on the nonprofit’s board. 

“I think there are some who have been prone for a long time to be skeptical of what I do and see everything I do in a negative light, and unfortunately there’s some with that impression, but I feel that the record and the facts show that I follow the rules,” Hunter said.   

While the RV Park proposal is not expected to come before Council due to changes in state law, Hunter said he would recuse himself from any related vote if it did.  

This is not the first time Hunter has had to brush back conflict of interest allegations. He cast a tie-breaking vote to adopt Kalispell's new land use plan in April despite accusations that his participation posed a conflict of interest.  

Reporter Jack Underhill can be reached at 406-758-4407 or [email protected]. If you value local journalism, pledge your support at dailyinterlake.com/support. 

    Community Action Partnership of Northwest Montana on Tuesday, April 29. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
 Casey Kreider