Fourteen areas of concern that are primed for mitigating wildlife risk are at the center of a draft Whitefish Community Wildfire Protection Plan.  

The plan, which is the topic of conversation during a City Council work session on Monday, is designed to examine at-risk areas and recommend measures to reduce those risks.  

Council meets for the work session at 5:30 p.m. at City Hall, 418 E. Second St. The regular meeting begins at 7:10 p.m.  

The plan, created by SWCA Environmental Consultants, evaluates wildfire risk, identifies community priorities and looks to guide mitigation and preparedness activities.  

The areas of concern are scattered around the city with the top three located north and east of Whitefish Lake. Fire behavior, terrain, development, access and response capacity were all evaluated as part of the plan.  

"A significant wildfire could affect lives and property while also disrupting infrastructure, businesses, employment, tourism, municipal revenue, community services, and the quantity or quality of municipal water supplies," the plan notes.  

The top priority is northeast of Whitefish Lake and the Haskill Creek area. It's listed as a forested area in the wildland-urban interface with steep slopes and heavy fuels, along with the potential for ignition from people and recreation.  

The second is the upper Haskill Basin watershed, which the plan notes as especially important because wildlife in the area could affect water quality and the city's water treatment operations. The area also has limited firefighting access.  

Third is Iron Horse, a highly forested residential area, along with substantial ingress and egress concerns.  

The plan recommends several strategies to address wildfire risk. The first goal is to implement hazardous fuels reduction and forest management in the priority areas including the Haskill Basin watershed.  

It also calls for encouraging neighborhood-scale mitigation where vegetation, access and wildfire exposure extend across individual property boundaries. Finally, it calls for a cohesive strategy for emergency wildfire response. 

Council will take public comment on the plan before providing direction to the city manager.  

A PUBLIC hearing on an annexation request will continue at the meeting. Just under 1 acre of land at 292 Reservoir Road is being requested to be annexed into the city and zoned suburban residential district.  

Council, following a public hearing, will consider a zoning text amendment to create a new small lot zoning district. Known as micro lot residential and part of implementation of the Vision Whitefish 2045 growth policy, it would allow for a minimum lot of 2,400 square feet for single-family dwellings or duplexes. For townhouses and triplexes, it would allow for a minimum lot size of 1,200 square feet.  

The Public Works Department is going before Council to get authorization for the next resort tax roadway reconstruction project. Given the popularity of Whitefish City Beach and resulting vehicle and pedestrian traffic in the area, the recommendation is to reconstruct Lakeside Boulevard and Skyles Place. The project is estimated at $3 million.  

Work is planned to involve reconstruction of about 2,000 feet of Skyles Place and Lakeside Boulevard from Oregon Avenue to Dakota Avenue. It would also include reconstruction of the retaining wall along the majority of Lakeside Boulevard and Skyles Place, along with the evaluation and possible reconstruction of the retaining wall at City Beach.  

Council is set to approve a resolution for the new open lands policy for F.H. Stoltze Land and Lumber Company. Stoltze owns about 3,000 acres of land in Haskill Basin, which includes a city and Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks conservation easement to protect the municipal water supply, open space and recreational opportunities.  

As part of the easement, the city and Stoltze operate under a resource management plan which incorporates the company's open land policy. Stoltze's updated policy provides clarification that no bicycle use is allowed off of existing road systems; off-road trails are not allowed; shooting is prohibited within a quarter mile of trailheads, access points and recreational trail corridors; fires are prohibited from May 1 to Oct. 1; and pets must be under owner control and supervised. The maximum number of camping days has been reduced from seven to three.  

Deputy Editor Heidi Desch can be reached at 406-758-4421 or [email protected]. If you value local journalism, pledge your support at dailyinterlake.com/support.