4a. Kalispell Core Area Plan - IntroductionKALISPELL CORE AREA PLAN
PLANNING BOARD RECOMMENDED
DRAFT PLAN
November 13, 2012
DRAFT
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The plan could not be realized
without the support and
commitment of the following
individuals:
The Owners
The 450 property and business
owners who live and work within the
Core Area.
CAST (Core Area Steering
Committee(
Pain Carbonari -Chair
(Business Improvement District)
Kellie Danielson (Montana West
Economic Development)
Tom Lund (Rocky Mountain Bank)
Joe Matulevich (Interested citizen)
Mike Mower (Landowner)
Jim Ness (Glacier Bank)
Bryan Schutt (Planning Board
representative)
Matt Springer (Flathead Valley
Community College)
Diane Yarus (Landowner)
Consultants
CTA Architects Engineers
City of Kalispell
City Council
Tarnmie Fisher - Mayor
Jim Atkinson
Kari Gabriel
Phillip Guiffrida
Robert Hafferman
Randy Kenyon
Tim Kluesner
Wayne Saverud
Jeff Zauner
Planning Board Members
Chad Graham - President
Bryan Schutt - Vice President
Richard Griffin
Phillip Guiffrida
Ken Hannah
Charles Pesola
Rory Young
City Staff
Tom Jentz, Planning Director
Katharine Thompson, Community
Development Manager
Sean Conrad, Senior Planner
Carol Davies, GIS Technician
Michelle Anderson, Office
Coordinator
We want to thank the Brownfield Area Wide Planning Pilot Program for their
financial assistance in preparing this document.
TABLE OF CONTENTS — CORE AREA REVITILIZATION PLAN
Executive Summary
Chapter 1. Vision for Core Area
Chapter 2. Goals for Our Future
Chapter 3. Vision and Goals in Action
Chapter 4. Making the Vision and Goals Real — First Steps
Appendix A — Current site conditions
• Burlington Northern Santa Fe Rail Road
• Street connectivity
• Sidewalks and pedestrian connectivity
• Water and sewer lines
• Brownfield sites
• Blighting issues: Site deterioration and incompatible land use
Appendix B — Market analysis and feasibility study
Appendix C — Public outreach
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
"Growth is inevitable and desirable, but destruction of community character is
not. The question is not whether your part of the world is going to change. The
question is how."
Edward T. McMahon, ULI Senior Resident Fellow
The City of Kalispell has long recognized that the heart of our community must
remain strong for Kalispell to grow and prosper. The heart of Kalispell includes
the historic downtown and those areas north of the downtown which constitute
the Core Area. These areas of the Kalispell community provide a unique setting
unlike the large scale commercial development on the north side of the city
which is mostly comprised of box stores and national commercial chains. The
downtown and Core Area are the original commercial districts of the city.
Through the years these areas have undergone changes but it is these areas
that provide Kalispell with its identity. Losing this identity, whether through
neglect or haphazard development patterns, will be a detriment to the entire
city.
Once the vibrant industrial center of Kalispell, there is a sense that the Core
Area has since lost its way. Through this plan, Kalispell is setting a course to
introduce sustainable redevelopment in the Core Area. In this context,
sustainable redevelopment means creating an economy based on using local
assets creating measurable local benefits depending primarily on the private
sector, particularly small businesses. This development will incorporate the
neighborhood quality of Life as a major component of economic competitiveness
with long term strategies recognizing that success in the Core Area shouldn't
come at the expense of downtown and in fact that success in one will benefit
the other. Finally, sustainable redevelopment will include Brownfield
remediation where needed to move Core Area infill properties to higher and
better uses, increasing both the property values and the tax base of the area,
and allowing for the most cost effective and efficient use of city services from
public safety to infrastructure.
The purpose of the plan is to develop a vision, integrate community ideas and
priorities, identify infrastructure needs and development limitations due in part
to the property classified as a Brownfield, and then create specific strategies to
make revitalization in the area a reality.
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The city focused its efforts on the heart of our community, the traditional
industrial hub we refer to as the "Core Area". The Core Area is located along
the rail corridor within the city limits bounded on the east and west by the
current city limits, on the north by Washington Street and on the south by
First Street. This 364 acre neighborhood, perched at the north end of our
traditional downtown, has shown significant signs of blight and neglect.
Based on a significant public outreach program conducted by city staff, the
focus of this plan includes a number of issues the public felt were important
for the future revitilation of this area. The major issues of concern include:
• Remove the railroad track
• Linear park development and green space replacing and/or in addition to
the railroad track
• Infusion of higher density housing
• Compatible mix of commercial and residential uses
• Pedestrian/bicycle trail development
• Sidewalk development and improvements
• Street improvements and increased north/south street connections
This plan sets out a series of goal and policy statements to address the above
issues and other concerns voiced by the public. With the help of a nine
member Core Area steering committee (CAST), a vision statement has been
crafted with concept plans illustrating the vision statement's desired built.
environment. The concept plans, along with goals and policy language provide
the foundation and encourage a built environment desired by the public. This
plan does not provide specific site designs or suggestions for individual
properties. Rather, this plan establishes a vision for the redevelopment of the
entire Core Area.
This document is written to provide the reader the vision statement and desired
future built environment of the Core Area. The vision statement created for the
Core Area reflects the major themes and values the residents and businesses in
the Core Area would like to see built. The vision statement describes the future
condition of the Core Area providing the public with the big picture in scope
and is general in nature. Vision statements are achievable but not in and of
themselves. Goal statements, policies and action items serve to implement
various parts of the vision but the vision always provides the course. It is
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important to remember that the vision statement, unlike the goals, policies and
actions, is written as if it is 10-20 years from now and we are looking back at
what came about as a result of this Core Area Plan.
At the end of this plan document are a series of action statements that outline
projects or standards which implement goals and policies. The goals, policies
and actions are interrelated, and work together to guide implementation of the
vision.
A number of goals and policies are included in this plan to provide direction to
achieve the vision of the built environment. Other policies address the social
environment which, together with the built environment, create an area within
the city that improves the quality of life for its residents and the city as a
whole. Place matters. It is on this principle that the plan will help to define
this area in the coming decades and make it a place that matters for
generations to come.
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