Kalispell City Council on Tuesday will consider approving a seven-building apartment complex proposed for South Kalispell.  

Because the Council chambers were closed for Labor Day, the body meets Sept. 2 at 7 p.m. in City Hall, 201 First Ave. E.  

Roger Foley, represented by Jackola Engineering & Architecture, PC, is proposing 99 multi-family apartment units on a 12-acre plot of land between Ashley Creek and Bluestone Drive.  

The land is currently county-owned, so the developer is looking for annexation of the property into the city, approval of a conditional use permit and initial zoning of RA-1 (residential apartment). Kalispell’s growth policy designates the area as urban residential, which supports high-density development. 

The Planning Commission tabled the proposal in July after a public hearing flooded with nearby residents criticizing the development as incompatible with the character of the neighborhood because the property is surrounded by single-family neighborhoods. They also argued it would endanger pedestrians and encroach on wildlife habitat along Ashley Creek.  

The board recommended approval of the proposal to Council after the developer came back during an August meeting with more information on traffic data, preservation efforts along Ashley Creek and the building’s scale relative to the existing homes, according to a city memo.  

COUNCIL will also decide whether to rezone and annex property to develop Ashley Creek Park, which is owned by the Bibler Resources Company and sits at the intersection of the Parkline Trail and Great Northern Historical Trail.  

Bibler Resources partnered with Kalispell to eventually bring the 36-acre park corridor under municipal jurisdiction, according to a city memo.  

Plans for the proposed park feature a playground, a gathering place, trail network and a garden reminiscent of the Bibler Gardens, a private display in Kalispell featuring thousands of flowers and fruit-bearing trees.  

COUNCIL will also mull over renaming the Kidsports Complex to honor Dan Johns, one of its key founders.  

Roy Beekman, a board member with Kidsports, the nonprofit that runs the fields, has been the leading voice for the name change since he first approached Council in 2016.  

Councilors appeared in favor of renaming the facility to the Dan Johns Kalispell Youth Athletic Complex during a July work session.  

COUNCIL will also vote to update city code allowing short-term school parking requests to be handled administratively.  

The move comes after Peterson Elementary School staff asked the city to consider a loading zone for buses and cars along Second Street West. The lot across the street at the former Armory property had been used for student drop-offs and pick-ups in the past, but construction of the new Samaritan House apartments on the lot prompted the need for another option.  

If approved, amending city code Section 17-82 would allow the city to grant any K-12 school a permit for loading areas and/or short-term parking.  

SILVERBROOK Village is looking to build 198 residential units intended as condominiums ranging from two-unit buildings to larger multi-unit buildings, according to a city memo.  

Council will vote to amend the Silverbrook planned unit development to allow for the proposal, which was brought by Montarise Developments, LLC.  

The nearly 12-acre plot of land sits within the 325-acre Silverbrook Estates.  

The Planning Commission held a hearing on the development in August but received no public comment.  

Reporter Jack Underhill can be reached at 758-4407 or [email protected].