10-02-25 City Manager Report1
City of Kalispell
OFFICE OF THE CITY
MANAGER
Information Memorandum
10/2/2025
Parks & Recreation
Park staff are completing the winterization of irrigation systems across Kalispell’s 28 parks. The
hanging flower baskets along the Parkline Trail have been removed, and annual flowers are
being cleared from park flower beds and downtown planters.
At Woodland Park, the camp center has been successfully converted into seasonal locker rooms
for the Flathead Valley Hockey Association (FVHA), which will use the facility through March.
A contractor has removed seven dead or declining Norway maple trees along 1st Avenue East
and in Courthouse Park East. Meanwhile, the Forestry crew is finalizing pruning work along 8th
Avenue West and will begin work on 6th Avenue West next.
The Fall Flag Football and Soccer seasons are wrapping up, with both programs running
smoothly. Registration for Fall Little Dribblers has closed, with enrollment increasing by 80
participants compared to last year. To accommodate the growth, three gym spaces have been
secured through School District 5, ensuring the program can continue to provide a quality
experience for all participants.
The After School Care program is now fully staffed, allowing capacity to expand. The program
is currently averaging 35 students per day, with the ability to serve up to 60. Enrichment
programming continues to grow, with special activities scheduled on Wednesdays and Fridays.
Last Friday, students participated in a pancake-making activity, learning about ingredients,
kitchen safety, and measurements.
2
Preparations are also underway for Skip Out Camp, scheduled for October 16–17 at Elrod
Elementary. The camp will run from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. during the statewide Educator
Conference Days.
Recreation Programmer Jeremey McKeen recently completed the lifeguard certification
instructor program. This qualification will allow the department to offer more frequent lifeguard
training sessions and help increase the number of certified lifeguards for the upcoming summer
season. Winterization of Woodland Water Park is also currently in progress.
Public Works
Biosolids Dewatering Project: Preconstruction services, early work contracts, and equipment
procurement are underway for the Biosolids Dewatering Project. To meet project timelines,
several pieces of equipment requiring long lead times have been ordered, including a new screw
press, waste-activated sludge pumps, conveyor belts, and large valves. The contractor has also
begun early work activities, including demolition and construction of a temporary truck storage
building, which are necessary to maintain current dewatering practices during later phases of
construction.
The engineering consultant is nearing completion of the final design, after which the contractor
will provide the Guaranteed Maximum Price (GMP). Upon approval of the GMP by both parties,
a final construction contract will be executed. This is anticipated to occur before the end of
December 2025.
North Elevated Tower: The north elevated tower is nearing substantial completion. The tank is
being filled, disinfected, and anticipated to be online by October 10th. Remaining items for
project completion include additional work on the North Tower well components, SCADA
transition/implementation, startup work throughs with consultants and contractors, and site work
punch list items.
3
Planning
The Planning Commission will hold a public hearing and take public comments on the agenda
item listed below:
File #KA-25-07 – Flathead County Public Safety Facility
1. Flathead County has submitted a petition for annexation and initial zoning of P-1 (Public
Facilities) for property located at 225 Snowline Lane, Kalispell, Montana. The property
can be legally described as Parcel B of Certificate of Survey No. 23135, located in the
Northeast Quarter of the Southwest Quarter, Section 33, Township 28 North, Range 21
West, M.P.M., Flathead County, Montana, containing 33.5 acres, more or less.
Annexation will allow connection to municipal services and establish zoning consistent
with the proposed public facility use. The project includes construction of a new Flathead
County Public Safety Facility, consisting of a detention center, Sheriff’s Office
headquarters, courtroom and program space, administrative offices, and related
infrastructure.
The Planning Commission will also hold a work session on the following item:
1. In the 2023 legislative session, the Montana Legislature passed Senate Bill 382, which
created the new Montana Land Use Planning Act. Under the Act, for cities such as
Kalispell, the current growth policy, subdivision regulations, and zoning regulations are
largely replaced with a new land use planning paradigm. The concept is that a land use
plan is established with extensive public input. The plan then becomes a guiding
document for land use decisions, many of which, such as subdivisions, become
administrative rather than conducted through a public hearing process. The opportunity
for the public to be engaged comes with the process establishing the plan and regulations,
not with review of a site-specific project.
This work session is the thirteenth in a series the Planning Commission will hold in the
coming months. It is intended that the focus of this work session will be a discussion of
chapters of the preliminary draft land use plan. Future work sessions will be noticed and a
formal hearing will be held before the Commission forwards a recommendation to the
City Council for its action.
Documents pertaining to the agenda items are on file for public inspection at the Kalispell
Development Services Department, 201 First Avenue East, Kalispell, MT 59901, and are
available for public review during regular office hours. In addition, information on the agenda
item is posted on our website at Planning Commission | Kalispell, MT (civicplus.com) under
Planning Commission “upcoming agenda.”
4
Building
In the last 3 weeks we have issued permits for 1 single-family home. That will keep the total of
new single-family/duplex and townhouse units for the year at 86 compared to 120 last year at
this time. There have been 295 multi-family housing units issued so far this year compared to
27 last year at this time.
There were a total of 454 combined building and/or fire inspections completed in the last 3
weeks.
Residential – 77 Plumbing – 34
Commercial – 88 Mechanical – 42
Electrical – 30 Fire – 183
Police
Below is an update of department activity over the last three years:
Patrol Calls For Service:
2025-25,940
2024-24,925
2023-28,840
Felony cases:
2025 – 481
2024 – 438
2023 – 470