Kalispell planners warn of impending parking crunch

Yahoo

16-05-2025

May 15—Kalispell officials are warning that on-street parking is in jeopardy thanks to a bill awaiting the governor's signature that limits off-street parking requirements on new construction.
The piece of legislation, House Bill 492, came up during the Kalispell Planning Commission's Tuesday meeting as members mulled over the preliminary draft land use plan required by the Montana Land Use Planning Act.
The act, which was signed into law in 2023, requires 10 Montana cities — including Kalispell — to draft a new land use plan that emphasizes boosting housing supply.
The city is required to adopt at least five of 14 potential zoning ordinances meant to stoke development, like reducing setback areas and lot size, or allowing apartments on single-family lots. Residents can peruse and vote on each regulation on the dedicated city webpage (engagekalispell.com/#tab-59610).
But an ordinance outlined in the act that limits parking regulations may become law regardless.
House Bill 492, sponsored by Rep. Katie Zolnikov, R-Billings, was introduced in February and would limit city parking requirements to one space per dwelling unit in new construction. It would also eliminate any parking requirements for child care, deed-restricted housing, assisted living or residential units under 1,200 square feet.
While developers have in the past built more parking than required, Development Services Director Jarod Nygren said he sees a potential for opportunistic developers to buy up infill and not allocate any parking, which would push cars out onto the city streets.
If that becomes reality, Nygren said the city would eventually need to look at outlawing on-street parking, particularly if it begins affecting the city's ability to provide services like plowing or responding to emergencies.
City officials expressed confusion as to why the bill was passed in a state with limited public transit.
"It seems like another [law] that was borrowed from a city where you can walk out of your apartment, jump on the train or walk to work," said Planning Commission Vice President Rory Young.
Kalispell city officials were not keen on some of the other zoning regulations the state Legislature wants cities to adopt under the Montana Land Use Planning Act.
Nygren criticized the law for prompting a "balancing act" of guiding new, diverse, development without remolding historic single-family neighborhoods and stripping away aesthetic amenities.
"We shouldn't be building housing just for the sake of housing, it should still be quality," Nygren said.
A potential ordinance allowing for three- and four-unit apartments wherever a single-family residence is allowed drew criticism for threatening the character of old neighborhoods.
"This takes an eastside, historic, single-family home and says you can tear down and build a fourplex," Nygren said. But the process is time consuming and expensive for any developer, and he predicted it would not result in attainable housing.
Planning Commission President Chad Graham was also an adamant no to the potential ordinance.
Homeowner associations are exempt from adhering to some of the ordinances, which Graham worried would disproportionally affect historic neighborhoods while letting newer subdivisions off the hook.
The ordinance to reduce setback areas by 25% was also looked down upon by city officials and the public, according to community feedback.
Assistant Development Services Director PJ Sorensen said the regulation may impede space needed for utilities, buffers and other infrastructure. Planning Commission member Pip Burke argued that people still need access around the outside of their house.
Nygren said that the setback ordinance, among others, disregard institutional knowledge around fire safety, noise and light for the sake of increasing housing density.
Many of the ordinances, though, the city already implements in some form, Sorensen said.
For instance, the city encourages denser development around community hubs like business centers and named "transit corridors." Kalispell also allows multi-family housing in commercial zones through a permit process.
THE COMMISSION also appeared in favor of a developer's proposal to expand a subdivision in south Kalispell.
Colton Behr, developer of the Anderson Ranch subdivision that was OK'd by Council in September 2024, is looking to annex 12 acres to the 31-acre property that resides on the west side of Demersville Road and just south of Lower Valley Road.
The extension, which is at the south end of the property, resides on a 100-year flood zone and is intended only for parkland and stormwater detention, according to the development proposal.
The entire subdivision stakes out 166 lots for single-family detached dwellings. The homes will be 1,600 square feet or less on 4,500-square-foot lots, "which equates to small homes on small lots that can provide more attainable housing options for residents of Kalispell," according to the subdivision proposal.
The subdivision shares a planned unit development with Todd Gardner, who owns property directly west that will see an Amazon distribution warehouse go up in the future.
A public hearing on the extension is scheduled for June 10.
Reporter Jack Underhill may be reached at 758-4407 or [e-mail].