Senate bill adds funding for bypass

The Daily Inter Lake

U.S. 93 project would get extra $4 million

U.S. Sen. Conrad Burns, R-Mont., announced Tuesday that additional funding for the U.S. 93 bypass has been included in a federal appropriations bill.

Burns, a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, requested $4 million for the bypass, plus another $4.2 million for the Reserve Loop.

The money is the fiscal 2007 Treasury, Transportation, and Housing and Urban Development Appropriations bill, which will move through the Senate Appropriations Committee this week.

"Kalispell has seen incredible growth on the west side, and I know how badly needed this project is to improve traffic and ensure public safety," Burns said according to a press release. "I'm pleased we were able to include this project in the bill and will be delivering this funding for the community."

The Reserve Loop is a new road planned near the north end of the bypass route. It would run southeast from the intersection of West Reserve Drive and Stillwater Road, past the new Glacier High School, to U.S. 93 south of the new Costco. After crossing the highway, it then would loop behind/east of Home Depot and reconnect to West Reserve.

The $4.2 million would pay for the western half of the road, from Stillwater to U.S. 93.

Flathead County Commissioner Gary Hall has been seeking funding for the Reserve Loop for more than a year, specifically because of safety concerns about the new high school. His efforts prompted Burns to seek the additional money and raised the priority of the project.

"I think without this kind of special appropriation, the loop would have been one of the last parts of the bypass to be built," Hall said Tuesday. "I'm real pleased that Sen. Burns was able to secure this money."

The $4 million for the overall bypass project would be added to the $30 million in construction funding that U.S. Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., secured as part of the last federal transportation bill.

Another $11 million has been allocated for right-of-way, utility relocation and design costs.

Burns is seeking re-election this fall.