City officials approved a proposal to build a six-unit attached townhome near Northridge Heights in Kalispell.  

Resident Job Shaw submitted the request in late August for a conditional use permit to build the townhome on his .7-acre property at 117 Northwest Lane.  

Opponents have until 5 p.m., Nov. 8 to appeal the approval.  

Each unit will consist of three bedrooms, two-and-a-half bathrooms and an attached garage. The entire building would take up roughly 5,040 square feet and stand at just under 30 feet tall, according to project site plans.  

A driveway for off-street parking will also connect each unit with a private drive feeding into Northwest Lane.  

The property is zoned R-3 (residential), which requires a permit to build townhomes with three or more attached units.  

The Development Services Department issued the permit subject to 13 conditions stipulating access onto Northwest Lane, off-street parking requirements and requiring that a homeowners association is established. 

The permit application underwent a fully administrative review since Council shifted subdivision approvals from elected officials to city staff to fall in line with the Montana Land Use Planning Act.  

The law is intended to streamline construction by making the development approval process more predictable.  

Planning Services Director PJ Sorensen, who issues the determinations, said the project took about the same amount of time to gain approval as it would have under the previous process, which required review by the Planning Commission and City Council.  

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.