1. Core Area Plan - Existing Site ConditionsPLANNING FOR THE FUTURE
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REPORT TO: Doug Russell, City Manager
FROM: Sean Conrad, Senior Planner
SUBJECT: Kalispell Core Area Plan
MEETING DATE: December 10, 2012
Planning Department
201 V Avenue East
Kalispell, MT 59901
Phone: (406) 758-7940
Fax: (406) 758-7739
www.kalispell.com/planning
BACKGROUND: The Kalispell City Council was provided a copy of the Kalispell Core Area Plan
as recommended by the planning board prior to their meeting on December P. At the December 3rd
council meeting the council scheduled a public hearing on the plan and will be holding a work
session prior to the public hearing on December loth
The attached materials, Core Area — Existing Site Conditions and Core Area — Public Outreach, were
not included in the draft document forwarded to the council. Both of the documents provide
background information on existing infrastructure in the core area and the public outreach and review
process completed to date on the plan. The documents are informational only and do not change the
draft plan's vision, goals or policies. They will provide the city council the reasons and comments
that helped to shape the Core Area Plan.
Respectfully submitted,
Sean Conrad
Senior Planner
Report compiled: December 5, 2012
c: Theresa White, Kalispell City Clerk
CORE AREA
EXISTING SITE
CONDITIONS
CORE AREA NEIGHBORHOOD
EXISTING CONDITIONS
SEPTEMBER, 2012
The Core Area Neighborhood bisects the heart of Kalispell stretching east -west
approximately 2 miles extending 3 blocks either side of the Burlington Northern
Railroad R/W. This neighborhood encompasses the historical rail -industrial center of
the city. The boundaries include Washington Street to the north, Woodland Park and
the eastern city limits to the east, First Streets East and West on the south and the
western city limits on the west. The area contains 364 acres lying in 1,100 parcels.
There are approximately 450 separate owners.
The purpose of this section, is to document the existing conditions of the Core Area.
The following report is divided into following sections for the purpose of discussion:
• Railroad R/ W
• Street Connectivity
• Sidewalks and pedestrian connectivity
• Water and sewer line conditions
• Brownfield sites
• Blighted, deteriorated or vacant properties
• Land use patterns
• Residential ownership patterns
Burlington Northern Rail Road
The Burlington Northern (BN) Railroad is the defining feature through this
neighborhood. The railroad was first established in Kalispell in 1892 when James J.
Hill brought the Great Northern Rai road over Marias Pass and into the Flathead
Valley en route to the Pacific. However, by 1904 the main route to the Pacific was
moved north to Whitefish as Haskell Pass west of Kalispell proved to be too costly to
maintain. From that point, rail service to Kalispell became of secondary interest as we
were demoted to branch line status. Today, BN sub -leases this branch line from
Columbia Falls to Kalispell to WATCO, a branch management firm out of Kansas City.
Kalispell's rail activity set the stage for the future growth of Kalispell and laid the
industrial pattern of the Core Area Neighborhood. Lumber mills, a cherry warehouse
and numerous gas and oil wholesalers were once located adjacent to or within a block
of the tracks. These businesses, which numbered well above 50 in the past, all
needed the railroad to operate. However, since the 1970's the land along the tracks
has been slowly changing from industrial to commercial and residential uses. Today
only three documented businesses use rail service. Cenex Harvest Grain operates a
grain elevator on Center and 5th Street. This is the only rail -served grain elevator in
Flathead County. Northwest Drywall on Washington and 8th West operates a drywall
supply and roofing materials business out of an existing warehouse/office building. A
third business leases a surface parking area off of 51t" Street West and receives
building materials, primarily drywall products.
The condition of the tracks in Kalispell varies. Sidings are typically extremely old and
occasionally unstable. As part of the tenant access agreements, users are required to
systematically upgrade their sidings over time. A significant portion of the main line
from First Avenue East to 5th Avenue West was rebuilt in 1986 with the development
of the Kalispell Center Mall and associated rail re -alignment. Little else has been done
to upgrade the tracks in the Kalispell area for some time.
Within the Core Area, BN owns the underlying railroad R/W as the tracks enter
Kalispell on the east until 4th Avenue East. At that point, approximately 10 years ago
the BN deeded the underlying railroad lands to the adjoining property owners while
maintaining a 25 foot easement for rail service underlying all main and branch lines.
This easement then extends westerly to 8th Avenue West where BN again maintains
rail ownership. Where BN still owns the R/W, the ownership is typically 100 feet wide.
On the west side of Kalispell lies the terminus of the rail line ending in a "Y". This
feature allows trains leaving Columbia Falls to "turn around" before they head back to
Columbia Falls. It should be pointed out that once a train leaves Columbia Falls
heading toward Kalispell; it must traverse all the way through Kalispell and utilize the
"Y" in order to turn around before it heads back to Columbia Falls.
Train activity is described as light at best in past years and never exceeds one train a
day and more typically usage is one train a week.
Issues associated with the presence of the railroad:
• Tracks would indicate this area is still heavily industrial when the opposite is
true. The change in land uses from industrial to commercial and residential
make the need for the tracks obsolete.
• The small size of many of the lots abutting the railroad tracks makes it difficult
to introduce new industrial uses that could take advantage of the tracks.
• The tracks have created many dead end streets in this area and have made
vehicle and pedestrian access in and around the area along the tracks difficult
and serve as a barrier to utility extensions.
• Safety factor with trains on poor tracks navigating through one of the busier
areas of the city.
2
• Train traffic, especially when grain unit trains are delivered delay traffic in
Kalispell.
BN will not authorize any additional pedestrian or vehicle crossings over active
tracks. In past years BN has closed 4 crossings leaving only 6 north -south
crossings in the community (3rd, 4th and 1 st Avenue East, Main Street, 5ffi
Avenue West and South Meridian.) Normally, within the typical grid system of
downtown Kalispell, one would expect to see upwards of 18 cross streets.
• Brownfields sites are associated with past railroad usage and past railroad
tenants.
• WATCO will store empty rail cars on switch lines and the far south end of the
tracks for revenue. This creates a blighting influence on immediately adjoining
residences.
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Street Connectivity
Local and regional traffic flows are extremely high in this area. US 2 and US 93
bisect this neighborhood both east -west and north -south. The intersection of
these two US highways creates one of the busiest intersections in the Flathead
Valley. Traffic pressures at this intersection cause people to find alternate
routes taking side streets to avoid the main intersection. This further congests
the Core Area Neighborhood. This phenomenon is further complicated by the
limited number of north/ south streets in the Core Area. Only six streets have
full access north - south through the Core Area, limited by the presence of the
BN tracks. They include South Meridian, 5th Avenue West, Main Street and 1st,
3rd and 4th Avenues East. These crossings are the sole way to move north and
south within the Core area. By contrast the typical lot and block configuration
developed north and south of Core Area would anticipate between 16 and 18
north/ south connections along this 2 mile section. Even more critically, from
5th Avenue West to Meridian Road a distance of almost 2,400 feet there is no
cross connection.
The lack of north/south street connections in this area funnels traffic into the
six streets creating traffic congestion at the intersections and unduly burdening
these particular streets. Constructing additional north/ south streets in the
Core Area would reduce congestion at existing intersections and provide
increased vehicle, pedestrian and bicycle mobility in the area. Additional streets
would also provide greater access to lots in the area, which are currently land
locked or have severe access limitations, allowing for more redevelopment
opportunities. Unfortunately, in recent years the railroad has closed 4 rail
crossings at 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th Avenues West. Further, it is BN policy not to
grant any new rail or pedestrian crossings unless an existing crossing is closed.
The Kalispell Area Transportation Plan (2006 Update), under the Executive
Summary, states that several major travel corridors will be pushed to their
limits in the coming years. The major travel corridors experiencing heavy traffic
volumes are US Highway 2 (Idaho Street), US Highway 93 (Main Street), Reserve
Drive and Meridian Road. Three out of the four major travel corridors are
within the Core Area Neighborhood.
Keeping future development in the urban renewal plan area from further
impacting these travel corridors will require alternative street connections in
this area. Creating additional north/ south street connections will continue the
existing street pattern providing multiple options to travel in and out of this
area. This in turn will help to reduce vehicle traffic on Meridian Road and Idaho
Street, two of the impacted travel corridors cited in the transportation plan.
Issues associated with current street connectivity:
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• North -south connectivity limited to 6 routes where typically 12-18 routes
should exist.
• Existing routes are carrying excess traffic furthering congestion in the
Core Area.
• Major highway oriented traffic (US 2 and US 93) are utilizing existing side
streets to avoid the Main and Idaho intersection further exacerbating
traffic flow. New routes cannot be pioneered without BN approval (not
expected), closure of an existing crossing (not advised) or actual removal
of the railroad tracks.
• Large tracts of land are generally land locked or have extremely limited
street access due to lack of north -south access roads and the presence of
the BN R/ W.
• Emergency services routes are circuitous and limited through this area
because of the limited number of through streets and heavy traffic loads
of existing streets and crossings
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Sidewalks and Pedestrian Connectivity:
Planning department staff has conducted a sidewalk survey in the Core Area.
On a positive note, sidewalks were installed by MDT in the summer of 2012
along both sides of Idaho extending from Main Street to the Meridian
intersection as part of an upgrade to West Idaho. However, the results of the
sidewalk survey show that roughly 115 blocks of sidewalk are still missing
within the Core Area. The lack of sidewalks is specifically noted along
significant portions of West Center Street, First Street West and streets and
avenues north and south of the Center Mall. Other avenues and streets within
the Core Area were found to have only sidewalks on one side of the street or
contain long gaps in the sidewalk from block to block. This is also the case
around the county fairgrounds adjacent to the Core Area where sidewalks are
present on Meridian Road west of the fairgrounds and Idaho south of the
fairgrounds but totally absent on the east and north sides of the property.
Additionally the fairgrounds, which extends over 2,000 feet (6 city blocks north -
south) serves as a barrier to through pedestrian travel.
This lack of sidewalks and complete pedestrian routes in this area makes it
extremely difficult for pedestrians, especially the elderly and young, to navigate
the streets in this neighborhood. The lack of sidewalks generally discourages
walking in an area of the city where walking should be encouraged.
Furthermore, north - south travel is extremely difficult due to the limited
crossing over the BN tracks and further limited by the increased vehicle traffic
that the existing crossings carry.
The Core Area negatively serves as almost a complete barrier to north Kalispell
pedestrian and bike access traveling through. Woodland Park, the city's largest
park complex is almost inaccessible by pedestrians traveling form the north
through the Core Area. Likewise the retail services of the downtown and
government services of the city, county and the Library are generally
inaccessible from neighborhoods to the north for pedestrian and bicyclists
because of the lack of existing continuous routes.
Issues associated with the pedestrian and bicycle connectivity:
• BN R/W serves as a barrier and limits the number of north- south crossings to
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• Specific bike access is non-existent. There are no bike lanes, bike trails or bike
oriented facilities in the Core Area.
• There is a significant lack of continuous sidewalk routes through the Core Area,
especially north -south routes.
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• Heavy vehicular traffic on area streets and lack of established, continuous
pedestrian and bike routes generally limit and discourage pedestrian and bike
access in this neighborhood.
• The Flathead County Fairgrounds on the edge of the Core Area is a major
impediment to pedestrian traffic and pedestrian access because of the lack of
perimeter sidewalk and through access.
• Major services, public buildings (City Hall, Library) and Woodland Park are not
directly linked to any pedestrian system.
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Water and Sewer Lines
Information on water and sewer lines from the city public works department
shows the vast majority of the proposed expansion area is served by water and
sewer lines. However, the major issue with these lines is age and additionally
for the water lines is the presence of dead end lines and a lack of a looped water
system.
Water lines located along Washington Street and many of the avenues east and
west of Main Street were installed between 1925 and 1930. These lines were
constructed out of cast iron and concrete. The city's Water Facility Plan Update,
chapter 6 Recommendations and the city's capital improvement plan,
recommends that approximately 2% of the system's total water mains be
replaced each year. The goal for this replacement plan is to achieve a 50-year
turnover of existing pipes. The current water lines are in excess of 80 years old.
Though water is still being delivered to the businesses and homes in this area
maintenance costs are increasing, untimely breaks are occurring and the future
costs and impacts to the service will only worsen.
In addition to aged water lines, the lines north of Center Street tend to dead end
at the railroad tracks. The water in these dead end lines can become stagnant
unless flushed. Creating a looped water system either with adjacent lines or
allowing lines to extend across the railroad tracks alleviates the need to flush
the lines and improves the fire flow within the pipes for the area.
The majority of sewer lines in the proposed expansion plan area are clay lines.
The exact age of the lines is not known however they were most likely installed
around the time when water lines were installed, between 1925 and 1930. The
city has slip lined sections of the clay lines which seals the lines and gives
additional longevity to the life of the line. However, not all of the lines in this
area have been slip lined and certain older lines may be difficult to slip line
because of jagged line configurations or dips in the line.
The other issue prevalent in the older clay lines is water infiltration into the
lines. Groundwater entering these sewer lines increases the volume of water
needing to be treated at the city's sewer plant. This increase can be substantial
after heavy rains. Over the coming years as the city grows and the capacity of
the sewer plant increases the infiltration of groundwater will further impact the
plant's ability to accept and treat the raw sewage it was built for.
Issues associated with water and sewer lines:
• Aged water and sewer lines in the area. Many water and sewer lines are over 50
years old and, while still operating, may have surpassed their useful life span.
This older infrastructure leads to more potential breaks needing more costly
repairs.
• Relatively high infiltration rate of ground water into the city's sewer collection
system. The increased ground water is then transferred to the city's water
treatment plant for treatment. This is not an issue today as the plant has been
expanded and can accommodate the influx of ground water however in the
future as the plant's capacity is increased due to more development in the
Kalispell area, treating ground water in addition to influent discharges from
residential, commercial and industrial uses around the city will become a
problem.
• Inadequate fire flows for hydrants to accommodate a mix of higher intensity
land uses.
• Dead-end water lines are prevalent in the area. These lines should be looped to
increase water pressure to hydrants and to adjacent properties to insure
enough water pressure is present for redevelopment purposes.
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Brownfield Sites
The term "brownfield site" means real property, the expansion, redevelopment,
or reuse of which may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of
a hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant. Contaminants can
include oil or gas found in the soil and placed there through a leaking
underground storage tank or an historical use which dumped contaminant
material on site. The presence of hazardous materials can require additional
costs to clean the site up prior to new development or redevelopment of the
property and this serves as a detriment to redevelopment.
The Core Area Plan boundary has a number of identified sites where leaking
underground tanks have been found. The Department of Environmental
Quality has identified 26 sites within or immediately adjacent to the proposed
plan area.
There may be more potential brownfield sites based on the presence of the
railroad tracks and the fact that this area historically was used for industrial
activity such as oil and fuel storage. The known leaking storage tank sites
and the history of industrial uses in this area have lead to perceptions in the
community that many, if not all, properties within the Core Area are
contaminated. This may or may not be the case however, this perception
continues and will play a role in the unwillingness of property owners or
developers to invest in redevelopment or new development in this area. This
can lead to further deterioration of buildings and property and reluctance to
reinvest.
The actual presence of hazardous substances including petroleum products can
lead to contamination of the soil and possibly groundwater. This type of
environmental contamination can lead to further reluctance to redevelopment of
the property.
Issues associated with Brownfield sites:
• There is a perception that many properties within the core area are
contaminated leading to a reluctance for further investment in those properties.
• Property owners are hesitant to have phase I and/or phase II assessments
conducted on their properties for fear that they may be held liable for any
contamination identified on the property. If contamination is identified there is
also a concern that clean-up of the identified contamination will be substantial.
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Blighted, Deteriorated or Vacant Properties
A survey of the Core Area shows 19 acres of vacant land and approximately 19
lots with vacant primary buildings. The number of vacant buildings is
approximate and is based on a visual survey of the neighborhood, whether there
appeared to be a business present in a particular building, the condition of the
building and/or if the building was being advertised for lease or sale.
The vacant lots and buildings represent underutilized properties in an area
located centrally in the city. These underutilized lots result in depressed values
for the lot itself and potentially surrounding lots. The vacant buildings are
typically metal sided, older buildings in need of maintenance and repairs.
These buildings, if not maintained, begin to detract from the neighborhood and
give the impression that the area is run down or otherwise not to be invested in.
The vacant lots also give an outward appearance of an abandoned area of the
city. This may lead to further disincentive to invest in the immediate area and
reduce the commercial or residential viability of the neighborhood.
Issues associated with blighted, deteriorated or vacant properties:
Deteriorating property and/or buildings that are unsecured pose a greater risk
for vandalism. This leads to further deterioration of the property and could
spread to adjacent properties. This could lead to a further disincentive for re-
investment in the area.
• Many of the older, unused structures can become unsafe and pose a threat to
the public's safety and general welfare. These unsafe buildings also pose
significant cost for rebuilding or removal if the property is to be redeveloped.
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The Flathead County Fairgrounds
The Flathead County Fairgrounds is an approximately 63 acre site with the
existing West Side Urban Renewal Plan boundary on three sides of the property
(north, south and west). The county fairgrounds are the largest single land use
on the west side of Kalispell. Yet it exists as an aged, under-utilized facility.
Because it is a significant land use in the area, its presence dictates to a great
degree the character and future viability of the plan area.
The fairgrounds is located at a gateway entrance to our community and its very
condition does little to move the community forward and conversely could well
be holding back the future viability of the area. A specific issue defined in the
West Side Urban Renewal Plan is that the present urbanized land use pattern in
the area incorporates a haphazard and incompatible mix of uses. The identified
goal to address this issue is to set a pattern of land use that incorporates
sensitivity to neighboring uses.
The city council has adhered to this goal in the past through the adoption of the
Kalispell Growth Policy and zone changes in the area, mainly along North
Meridian Road. The zone changes have reflected the land use designations
shown on the Kalispell Growth Policy Future Land Use Map and have taken into
account the surrounding residential and commercial uses in the area. The goal
of incorporating sensitivity to neighboring uses can be further implemented by
including the fairgrounds property in the West Side Urban Renewal Plan
boundary and working on the three issues listed above. This in turn will
achieve a greater cohesiveness between the fairgrounds and surrounding
commercial and residential development.
Issues associated with the Flathead County Fairgrounds:
The majority of the fairgrounds property has chain link fencing topped with
three strands of barb wire along the perimeter of the property. The outward
appearance is more prison like giving the impression of excluding the
community from the grounds especially the residential neighborhood
immediately east of the fairgrounds.
The majority of stables, grandstand, offices and smaller venue buildings are
over 50-years old. The age of some of the buildings and quality of construction
has led to a quicker deterioration of the structures and now require more than
general maintenance to have them visually appealing to the public.
• The parking lots are gravel or dirt with the exception of the north parking lot,
across West Wyoming Street, which is grass throughout most of the year
turning to mud or dust during fair time. These parking lots do not meet city
parking lot standards which require the lots to be paved. Paving the lots
12
prevents dust issues in the immediate neighborhood and tracking mud onto
adjacent streets.
13
Land Use Patterns
The Core Area was once the center of industrial activity in the Kalispell
community. Industrial uses included grain silos, bulk oil storage, a variety of
warehouses and lumber mills. Over the last century many of the industrial
uses have closed their doors, relocated or moved out of the city. In their
place, retail commercial businesses have moved into the area including three
grocery stores, a large indoor mall and high density housing. The Core Area
is still the home to a grain elevator and bulk fertilizer plant as well as a
wrecking yard, aged Quonset buildings, Flathead Electric Co-op substations,
vacant warehouse buildings, etc. The presence of these uses, while once the
mainstay of industry, are now quickly becoming the exception as the Core
Area evolves.
In addition to several industrial sites, utility sites, whether they are well
houses, lift stations, electrical utility sites, pumping stations or cell towers are
located throughout the Core Area. The city operates one municipal site, a well
house, in the Core Area. Flathead Electric Cooperative (FEC) owns and
operates two utility sites within the Core Area. The first site is approximately
1.7 acres at the intersection of East Center Street and Woodland Avenue. The
site is currently used for storage of materials. The second site is located at
the southeast corner of 7th Avenue West North and West Washington Street.
The site is slightly under 1/2 acre and is an active electrical substation.
Issues associated with land use patterns:
• Industrial type land uses, several of which still use the railroad tracks, are
now the exception to the land uses in the core area creating possible
incompatible uses with neighboring land uses.
• Outward design and appearance of the utility sites does not lend itself to
neighborhood compatibility or neighborhood enhancement. These sites, while
necessary, have not been incorporated into the fabric of the neighborhood.
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Residential Ownership Patterns
The Core area contains approximately 180 single-family and duplex residential
structures. A survey of ownership shows that approximately 57% are rental
structures. The most common type of residential structure, by number, in the
Core Area is a single-family detached house. Many of these houses are older
homes having been constructed over 50 years ago.
In several parts of the area, this pattern of absentee ownership, while providing
valuable rental housing opportunities, is actually a sign of things to come as
rental properties typically receive less care and maintenance than owner
occupied housing. While a mixture of housing type and occupancy creates a
healthy neighborhood, a large abundance of older rental housing signals a
disinvestment in the neighborhood. Poor housing rental stock also lends itself
to greater turnover and less neighborhood stability.
There are several notable multi -family structures within the boundaries of the
Core Area plan. The largest concentration of multi -family housing is located on
the west end of the Core Area along Appleway Drive. Housing here consists of
both market rate housing and subsidized housing for low-income families. The
newest apartment building is located on the east end of the Core Area along
East Center Street. Depot Place is a 40-unit senior apartment building for low
income seniors.
There are several older motels on the east side of the district that provide long
term stay opportunities. However, these motels have been located in this area
for the past 50+ years. The motels still provide nightly rentals but have
expressed interest in creating suites to accommodate longer stays, weekly or
monthly instead of daily.
Issues associated with the residential ownership patterns:
• A significant portion of the housing stock may not be up to current building
and fire codes making the units unsafe and a detriment as opposed to an
asset to the neighborhood.
• A higher number of single-family and duplex units are rental housing. This
increases the transient nature of families and individuals in the area and can
lead to a lack of neighborhood investment both on the physical side (housing
and lot deterioration) and the social side (knowing your neighbors; building
stronger communities).
• A greater percentage of lower income and transient households tends to also
bring issues needing greater assistance from the police and fire departments.
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A concentration of lower income housing is something that should be avoided,
with low income housing spread throughout the Core Area and larger
community.
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