01-03-20 City Manager Report1
City of Kalispell
OFFICE OF THE CITY
MANAGER
Information Memorandum
1/3/2020
1.Parks Department
Parks and Forestry crews have been working together on pruning throughout the
community. So far, 180 trees have been pruned in Ashley Heights and Sunnyside
subdivisions. Crews will be working throughout Northridge and 3rd Avenue East in the
coming days. Parks crews will continue picking up the wood felled by a contractor a few
weeks ago for delivery to the Flathead High School Woodshop program.
Our Freeze Out Camp is in full swing with record participation this year
(181 participants compared to 73 last year). The kids are participating
with our “STEM gems” activities, focusing on science, technology,
engineering, and math. One of the highlights so far was building “snow
volcanoes” that erupted. We also have three field trips scheduled
including ice skating, indoor rock climbing, and a trip to see Frozen 2 at
the movie theater.
We have several recreation programs in early January. Our second
session of ice skating lessons will start on Tuesday, January 7 at
Woodland Park. We also have our FHS Cheerleading Camp taking
place on Saturday, January 11. This camp is always popular with the
kids because the participants get to show off their new skills and
perform at the FHS varsity basketball halftime show!
2.Police Department
Attached is the latest case report from law enforcement.
Senior Sergeant Allen Bardwell and Detective Michelle O’Neil retired from the Kalispell
Police Department on December 31; Senior Sergeant Bardwell with 30 years of service to
the department and Detective O’Neil with 20 years of service.
The Kalispell Police Department will conduct new officer testing on January 7 to replace
those retirements and further anticipated openings. The process consists of a written
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examination and the MPAT test. That is followed by interviews and background
investigations. There is also physical testing that is designed to simulate the demands of
the position.
Officer Dillon Sheets and Matthew Woods are scheduled to attend the Montana Law
Enforcement Academy on January 8. The Law Enforcement Officer (LEO) Basic
Course is an intensive 12-week course that is offered three times a year. The course is
accredited by the Public Safety Officer Standards and Training (POST) Council.
3.Public Works
New Street Light Installations
This fall/winter Public Works Engineering Staff managed the project for the installation
of 2 street lights at the intersections of Financial Drive and White Bark Lane. As requests
for street light installations are received by Public Works, an engineer performs a warrant
review for the potential installation. If the warrants are met, the engineer proceeds with
following the implementation process for the installation of the street light.
Winter Season
Winter snow season is here and the city crews are prepped and ready to take on the snow
and ice conditions in the city streets. The city’s Snow Policy was adopted by Council in
1997 and provides a policy on snow removal procedures for streets, alleys, and
sidewalks. The Policy delineates responsibilities of the Public and sets expectations for
city roles and responsibilities. A summarization of the policy can be accessed on the
Kalispell website at www.kalispell.com/public_works/snow removal or by calling Public
Works at 758-7720. Below is the summarization of the Policy:
Snow Routes: A primary system of unmarked snow routes has been established for effective snow removal
on the collector and arterial system. The snow routes are divided into first priority and second priority
routes. First Priority: Any hour service by the Street Division for snow routes which are established
emergency and school routes. Second Priority: To receive immediate attention following plowing of first
priority routes.
Plowing & Parking in Residential Areas: Residential areas will be plowed within 48 hours of the end of
snowfall in excess of 3 inches. Less than 3 inches will not be plowed from residential streets unless drifting
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occurs. In central Kalispell plow operators will clear Avenues on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Plow
operators will clear snow from Streets on Tuesday, Thursday. If you must park your vehicle on the public
street then you are requested to park on the nearest adjacent Street or Avenue on the days when plows are
operating.
Other residential areas, typically South of 18th Street, East of Woodland Avenue, West of Meridian Road,
and North of Colorado Street, where off-street parking is more abundant, are not impacted by the request to
move vehicles between Streets and Avenues. However, snow clearing in these outlying areas will be
greatly improved if on-street parking is held to a minimum.
Please note: Plow operators will attempt to clear snow from curb to curb. Where access to the curb line is
blocked by parked cars the vehicle owner should expect snow to accumulate around the parked car as the
plow passes the vehicle. City crews will try to avoid plowing snow against a parked vehicle. However, if it
does happen they will not be able to assist in removing the piled snow.
Plowing Private Property: It is strictly forbidden for a city plow to clear snow or ice from private property
unless it must be done to allow emergency vehicle access. Pushing snow from private property onto the
public streets or sidewalks is also prohibited by the City Code section 24-18.
Private Driveways: City plows are not responsible for clearing private driveways or snow from private
property. The operators do their best to minimize the driveway berms, but some accumulation is inevitable.
Care will be exercised by operators to minimize the blocking of the driveways, however the burden is the
property owners or occupant responsibility to clear the driveways.
Alleys: Alleys will not be plowed except to maintain essential City services.
Public Parking Lots: Plowed within 12 hours of the end of snow event by Street Division. Parking lots and
sidewalks administered by the Kalispell Parking Commission are not covered by this Policy.
Sidewalks: Sidewalks at City operated facilities shall be cleared within 36 hours of end of snowfall.
Clearing snow from sidewalks adjacent to private property is the responsibility of the property owner or
resident. City Code Sec. 24-17.
Sanding/Ice Control: Use of street sanding abrasives and deicers will be dictated by specific weather and
road conditions of each snow event. Street sanding abrasives and Sodium Chloride solution (with rust
inhibitor) shall be used when the application will produce a proven result. Sanding abrasives generally will
not be used except when a solution of Sodium Chloride will be ineffective.
4.Information Services
IT staff are close to removing the remaining Windows 7 computers. Windows 10
computers are built and ready to deploy.
IT staff are planning the Office 365 email migration to the government cloud from the
Office 365 enterprise cloud. The email migration date is scheduled for the end of
January. More information will become available as the planning is detailed. The
migration will cause staff email to be inaccessible for 24 hours. Emails will not be lost
but email access will not be available.
IT staff are supporting the courtroom audio video modifications. Equipment and wiring
was removed and replaced with new wiring and equipment. The programmers will be on
site this week to configure the equipment. The existing large screen at the front of the
courtroom will be used for video conferencing. A desktop screen will be shared from the
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Judge or attorneys to display on the existing monitors and the witness stand. The
microphone levels will be equal from all microphones, improving court recording and
playback.
5.City Clerk/Communications
The City Facebook page has added about 1,500 followers in the past year, growing the
page to 6,505 followers. The City Instagram page had 1,734 followers at the end of 2019.
Twitter and LinkedIn continue to be the slowest growing audience for our
communications with 716 followers on Twitter and 444 on LinkedIn. News on the city
webpage continues to be updated regularly and is another method to reach our
constituents as subscribers can sign up for auto emails in categories such as news, press
releases, city manager reports, construction alerts, and council and board agendas.
The City Clerk’s office participated in an orientation for the three new Council members
and hosted a reception honoring outgoing Council members.
The City Clerk will gather committee members from each department to begin working
on a digital records preservation plan for the city that will follow state guidelines and
provide policy for utilizing certain digital records as official records of the city, thus
eliminating unnecessary paper records. The plan will also facilitate consistency of records
preservation across departments.
6.Finance
The annual audit report for the City’s financial statements was received on December 30.
The entire Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) is available in PDF format
on the City’s website. The Independent Auditor’s Report begins on page 12 of the
CAFR, and is presented as a component of the financial section of this report. The goal
of the independent audit is to provide reasonable assurance that the financial statements
of the City for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2019, are free of material misstatement.
Auditors have a responsibility to issue an appropriate report in circumstances when, in
forming their opinion on the financial statements, they conclude that a modification to the
auditor’s opinion is necessary. The City received an unmodified opinion for the
independent audit. Prior to fiscal year 2013 this was referred to as an unqualified
opinion, and concludes that the financial statements are presented fairly in all material
respects.
The GFOA awarded a Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting
to the City of Kalispell for its comprehensive annual financial report for the fiscal years
ended June 30, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2018. We believe
that our current comprehensive annual financial report continues to meet the Certificate
of Achievement Program’s requirements and it has been submitted to the GFOA to
determine its eligibility for another certificate.
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7.Planning Department
The Planning Board will hold a public hearing at their January 14 meeting to hear a
request from Spartan Holdings, LLC for a PUD and major preliminary plat application
within the B-2/PUD and RA-2/PUD Zones. In 2017, Spartan Holdings requested a PUD
placeholder per Section 27.19.020(2)(b) of the Kalispell Zoning Ordinance. The project’s
land uses are based on the approved 2017 PUD Placeholder application and petition for
annexation and initial zoning for the subject property, which proposed the zone the
property as a mixture of General Business along U.S. 93 North, transitioning to RA-2
Residential Apartment/Office to the west towards the river.
The intent of the PUD on the entire property is to create a mixed-use residential and
commercial neighborhood in proximity to other services within the northern limits of
Kalispell. The applicant is now submitting a PUD application for the commercial
development on the eastern portion of the property bordering U.S. 93 North (Phase 1).
Phase 1 will consist of 15 commercial lots along with the necessary right-of-way
(including Rose Crossing extension) needed to access each lot, sewer and water
extensions and open space buffers adjacent the highway and river. As part of the
application, the applicant is requesting a reduction in the 100-foot setback from U.S. 93
North to 50 feet and a reduction from the 200-foot setback from Stillwater River to a
varying setback depending on the geotechnical analysis on the property. The residential
component of the development will be proposed as Phase 2 and will be part of a future
PUD application request. The subject property is located at 2890 Highway 93 North,
generally bound by the Stillwater River on the west and south, U.S. 93 North on the east
and Northern Pines Golf Course and Falkor Defense on the north.
8.Building Department
In the last 2 weeks, we have issued permits for 0 single-family homes and 4 townhomes.
That will bring the total of new single-family/duplex and townhouse units for the year to
159, compared to 140 last year at this time. Multi-family units for the year remain at 80.
Last year at this time we had issued permits for 66 multi-family units.
9.Community Development
Montana DEQ has approved eligibility for the City of Kalispell to use its EPA
Brownfields assessment funds to conduct a petroleum Phase II environmental site
assessment at the former CHS Country Store site. Additional preparations will begin in
the coming weeks with the assessment work to follow.
Offenses
Reported Arrests Offenses
Reported Arrests Offenses
Reported Arrests Offenses
Reported Arrests Offenses
Reported Arrests Offenses
Reported Arrests Offenses
Reported Arrests Offenses
Reported Arrests Offenses
Reported Arrests Offenses
Reported Arrests Offenses
Reported Arrests Offenses
Reported Arrests Offenses
Reported Arrests
Crimes Against Persons
Homicide 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0
SIWOC/Sexual Assault 5 1 3 0 3 0 6 0 4 0 3 0 1 0 1 1 7 1 6 0 8 0 47 3
Robbery 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0
Aggravated Assault 6 3 6 1 3 1 3 1 7 2 2 1 4 1 10 8 2 0 9 3 4 3 56 24
Assault on a Peace Officer 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
Simple Assault 7 4 5 6 12 6 16 11 10 2 8 5 9 5 18 10 6 3 9 3 10 2 110 57
PFMA 14 11 7 6 12 7 12 7 7 6 8 4 8 4 10 6 10 7 8 6 10 7 106 71
Resisting Arrest 4 5 3 2 3 2 1 1 1 1 8 8 2 1 3 3 3 3 5 5 4 3 37 34
Crimes Against Property
Burglary 7 4 6 3 2 0 6 1 6 0 5 1 8 1 10 1 8 1 4 0 2 0 64 12
Theft 51 17 48 22 32 12 49 11 77 9 63 11 78 14 63 27 69 17 80 25 79 32 689 197
Vehicle Theft/Unauth Use 2 0 2 0 4 2 7 0 8 1 5 0 8 1 8 1 0 0 7 1 6 0 57 6
Arson 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Forgery/Counterfeit 1 0 5 0 9 2 4 1 8 0 0 0 4 0 3 0 9 1 15 1 6 0 64 5
Fraud 6 0 9 3 3 1 4 0 8 0 5 1 1 0 6 1 8 1 5 1 3 1 58 9
Theft of Identity 1 0 1 0 2 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 9 0
Embezzlement 1 1 0 0 2 2 1 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 7 6
Stolen Property offenses 1 1 2 0 2 0 0 0 2 0 1 0 3 0 5 3 3 1 5 4 2 1 26 10
Criminal Mischief 11 1 4 2 14 4 18 3 18 6 17 2 25 1 18 1 14 3 14 0 8 1 161 24
Crimes Against Society
Weapon Law Violations 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 5 3
Prostitution Offenses 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Child Pornography 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5 0
Drug Offenses 41 22 24 17 37 25 33 17 22 15 30 20 34 16 47 31 42 19 36 19 38 28 384 229
Family Offenses (non-violent)2 0 0 0 3 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 9 2
DUI 13 15 7 5 13 13 7 6 7 6 9 8 10 10 11 10 7 7 10 9 5 5 99 94
Possession of Alcohol 0 0 0 0 1 0 4 8 4 4 3 8 2 2 8 23 2 4 8 7 9 12 41 68
Provide Alcohol to Minor 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Other Alcohol Offenses 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 2 3 2 5 4
Kidnapping/Custodial Int.1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 4 1
Disorderly Conduct 4 2 6 3 7 7 6 4 7 5 7 5 5 5 4 3 5 4 7 6 9 9 67 53
Criminal Trespass 12 7 5 2 5 5 14 6 18 3 16 9 25 14 21 15 18 9 19 10 24 10 177 90
Violation of Protective Order 2 1 4 1 4 1 2 0 5 2 2 1 6 0 1 0 2 1 6 2 11 3 45 12
Obstructing a peace officer 9 10 7 4 9 8 10 10 5 3 8 9 8 6 9 11 9 6 11 8 8 3 93 78
Juvenile Offenses (except MIP)10 9 10 3 11 10 12 9 7 7 6 7 10 2 7 8 4 2 3 2 8 6 88 65
Other Offenses 49 49 48 48 53 48 38 35 38 37 48 45 39 40 53 52 41 38 46 43 36 35 489 470
Total 260 163 215 128 247 157 254 133 276 110 255 146 292 124 321 217 272 129 317 157 296 164 0 0 3005 1628
Traffic
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Stops Cites
1045 602 615 422 736 468 739 423 962 612 742 457 529 379 644 501 579 447 556 420 437 302 7584 5033
Total Calls for Service 3312631943014331630102894256332062734280930403346
Kalispell Police Department Case and Arrest Reports - 2019
January February March April May June July August September October November December Totals