Kalispell City Council on Monday night held a sparsely attended public hearing on its new land use plan, which is intended to guide development over the next 20 years.  

City staff and a consulting firm spent the past year meeting community stakeholders and hosting open houses to encourage public involvement in the new land use plan, as required under the 2023 Montana Land Use Planning Act. A slew of written comments were submitted to City Hall over that time, but Monday’s hearing saw little involvement from the public.   

“I was expecting more people to come out here, I think we all were,” said Councilor Jed Fisher. “Now is the time to get involved ... [These are] some major things we are doing now.” 

One public comment came from Kindee Nelson, a resident of Kalispell’s west end and frequent attendee of Council meetings, who asked Mayor Ryan Hunter to step aside from the upcoming vote on the land use plan.   

“I feel he has a personal agenda,” she said.  

Her request followed an accusation leveled against the mayor by Fisher earlier in the month. Fisher charged Hunter with helping to draft a letter from the Flathead Land Trust — his employer — urging the city to remove agricultural land used by sandhill cranes from its future growth plan.  Hunter said he was not involved in writing the letter.  

The large chunk of the West Valley area lies outside city limits but within the city’s planning boundary, and it serves as a migration stop for hundreds of cranes. Hunter initially supported the nonprofit’s request to strike the area, but city staff advised against it, saying the change would hinder development and undo extensive planning work completed in 2007.    

Hunter reached out to the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks for guidance. The agency sent a letter to Council on Monday recommending that the land be designated as an “area of concern,” identifying the site as an important stopover for tens of thousands of migratory waterfowl.  

If Council chooses to keep the area in its future growth boundary, the state agency recommended maintaining large lot sizes with only one house and restricting road building. Promoting high-density development would be incompatible with preserving the area, the letter read.  

Councilor Sam Nunnally on Monday asked Hunter to consider submitting to questioning from the city attorney to assure the public that there is no conflict of interest.  

“I am not saying you are guilty of anything. I am not saying that. What I’m saying is I think it’s an important step that we take,” he said.  

Hunter said that he would be happy to involve the city attorney before the April 6 vote.  

REPRESENTATIVES FROM the Montana Department of Transportation and an engineering firm presented a plan outlining how access points to U.S. 93 between Kalispell and Whitefish should be managed.  

The plan intends to limit the number of entrances and exits onto the highway by consolidating them, such as by creating shared approaches along property lines.  

The document is needed to establish a clear plan because requests for highway access have increased along with the area’s growing population, according to Jacquelyn Smith with Robert Peccia and Associates.  

Once adopted, the plan will guide where access points are placed as new development occurs, property ownership changes and funding becomes available, Smith said.   

COUNCILORS AGREED to fast-track the project to replace city well sites contaminated with what are colloquially known as forever chemicals.  

The plan would reduce downtime and limit impacts on the municipality’s water system by allowing the city to hire a contractor earlier than usual. The move is expected to shorten the construction timeline.  

The city has used the alternative method in the past, such as to hasten upgrades to the municipality's wastewater treatment plant.  

The city plans to drill two well sites to replace the Grandview Wells and Armory Well, which have consistently detected levels of per- or polyfluoroalkyl substances, also known as PFAS, or forever chemicals, since they were tested in 2022. 

The Grandview Wells are currently being treated with a system installed in October 2024 that has effectively filtered out the chemicals, but this setup is only temporary. Public Works Director Susie Turner hopes to replace the wells before the resin in the filtration system needs to be changed out.  

Council also approved the final plat for a subdivision on the west side of town.  

JCM Development, LLC, requested approval of the Autumn Creek Subdivision that will consist of 28 lots on 8.5-acres along Hathaway Lane, north of U.S. 2 West.  

Hunter was the sole vote opposing the development, reiterating past concerns that it impeded on nearby wetland.  

During general public comment, Arthur Dunn — a candidate for House District 6 — urged Council to create a policy requiring the city to cooperate with federal immigration authorities.  

“We need to enforce our laws, and we need to protect Americans that live in the Flathead, Americans that live in Kalispell. That's your duty, is to the citizens here, not to foreigners who are not supposed to be here,” he said.  

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.