County planning board considers subdivision south of Whitefish

The Flathead County Planning Board tonight will consider a request to turn vacant land east of U.S. 93 south of Whitefish into a subdivision described as similar to the Whitefish Hills.

BAE Development, LLC is seeking approval to develop the Woodlands, which would create 18 residential lots on about 44.6 acres. The developer is requesting a planned unit development, preliminary plat and zone change for the property located south of Bird Lane.

The plan is to develop a project similar in “density and character” to the Whitefish Hills subdivision, which sits immediately southwest of the proposed property across from U.S. 93, according to the planning application.

The county planning board meets at 6 p.m. on the second floor of the South Campus Building at 40 11th Street W in Kalispell. There are six public hearings on the board’s agenda.

For the Woodlands, the owner is seeking to change the zoning of about 30 acres of the property from AG-20 to SAG-5 and 14 acres would remain unzoned.

As part of the PUD, the developer is proposing to cluster the 18 lots along an internal roadway while using open space to buffer the highway and the neighbors to the north. The plan calls for leaving 11.81 acres in open space that would be owned and maintained by the homeowner’s association for use by the residents of the Woodlands. There is also a small ravine that runs through the center of the property that would be preserved in the open space, according to the planning staff report.

The lots within the subdivision are proposed to be 1.22 acres to 1.97 acres in size. The properties would be served by a shared water system and individual septic systems.

Primary access to the subdivision is expected to be provided by the existing approach onto U.S. 93 which would become an internal road through the subdivision, and an emergency secondary access is planned on the existing north approach to the highway.

The proposed subdivision is expected to generate 180 vehicle trips per day.

ALSO ON the planning board agenda, the owners of the former Montana Raceway Park are seeking a preliminary plat to develop a 28 residential lot subdivision on the property that housed the raceway. The property is 40 acres in size located between Kalispell and Whitefish on the west side of U.S. 93 off McDermott Lane.

The project would create 28 single-family residential lots on the property with 4.15 acres set aside as accessible open space and 1.31 acres dedicated as parkland. The property would be served by individual septic systems and a shared water system.

The subdivision once constructed is estimated to generate 280 vehicle trips per day. County subdivision regulations state that a second primary access road may be required when the proposed subdivision generates more than 200 vehicle trips per day.

The proposed secondary emergency access would intersect the property at the northeast corner of the property at the same location as McDermott Road, therefore, the owner is requesting a variance to the secondary access requirements, according to the planning staff report.

The property is zoned AG-40, but the owner is seeking a zoning map amendment to change the zoning to R-1, the staff report notes.

The property is within the Riverdale Neighborhood Plan area and is designated as mixed use, which is described as intended to provide flexibility in design to promote a mix of commercial and housing options.

THE BOARD will also hold hearings on:

A request from Larry and Darla Meaders, with technical assistance from Sands Surveying, Inc., for preliminary plat approval of Legacy Ranch, a proposal to create five residential lots on 26.67 acres at 1673 W Springcreek Road near Kalispell.

A request from Sands Surveying, Inc., on behalf of Steven and Patricia Knoll, for a preliminary plat for Knoll Subdivision No. 2, a proposal to create four residential lots on 19.37 acres at 15 Wildman Way near Kalispell.

A request from Sands Surveying, Inc, on behalf of Greg and Erin Olson, for a preliminary plat approval of PJ Subdivision, a proposal to create two residential lots on about 5 acres at 199 Wintercrest Drive near Kalispell.

For more information, visit https://flathead.mt.gov/planning_zoning/planningboard.php

Features editor Heidi Desch may be reached at 758-4421 or hdesch@dailyinterlake.com.