Kalispell Council to Deliberate Flathead Warming Center’s Future Following Testimony

The Kalispell City Council on Monday night heard testimony from representatives of the Flathead Warming Center who defended the nonprofit shelter’s record against accusations that it has not adhered to its conditional use permit following widespread complaints of disruptive behavior among the homeless population.

The hearing drew a crowd that filled city council chambers with homeless advocates who supported the warming center along with neighbors who oppose the nonprofit’s services. Following the hearing, councilors at a special meeting Tuesday night will decide whether to revoke or amend the conditional use permit, or take no action.

Flathead Warming Center Executive Director Tonya Horn, Chairman Luke Heffernan and members of the board responded to the city council’s allegations that the shelter’s existence has increased the homeless population. The organization is also accused of not being a “good neighbor” as residents raise concerns about the behaviors of clients, including loitering, littering, public defecation, a lack of transportation in and out of the neighborhood, trespassing, and other types of criminal activity.

Councilors have accused the low-barrier homeless shelter’s leaders of not following the criteria outlined in the conditional use permit, which the council unanimously approved in 2020. The permit allows the 50-bed warming center to operate on North Meridian Road in neighborhood business zone B-1, which is not zoned for a homeless shelter.

Flathead Warming Center leaders addressed the nine assertions laid out in a May 31 letter from Kalispell City Attorney Johnna Preble, which includes complaints of an increase in the homeless population to the area, an uptick in law enforcement calls, and “failing to be protective of … the neighborhood,” as indicated in the permit.

“The city council found enough merit in these assertions to gather us here tonight,” Horn said. “The only basis for revocation that the city has provided us is my signature clause in the application. I’m here to tell you tonight that everything in the Flathead Warming Center’s CUP [conditional use permit] application was absolutely true to the best of my knowledge at the time that I signed it.”

Members of the Flathead Warming Center’s board of directors addressed each assertion individually at the hearing, presenting video clips from past council meetings, neighborhood maps, client data, and email and text message exchanges as evidence of conditional use permit compliance.

Roger Nasset, a board member and the former Kalispell police chief, addressed the increase in law enforcement calls to the area. The city had previously provided data that compared calls prior to the center’s opening in 2020 to the present volume, which showed a spike in activity. Nasset said the data lacks sufficient detail to connect calls to warming center clients while other variables contributed to a rise in homelessness.

“From the time the Flathead Warming Center opened its doors on Meridian, several factors have been at play and may have skewed that correlation,” Nasset said. “These factors include the closing of multiple low-income housing sites … diminishing care in mental health and addictions services, substantial cost of living increases and the everlasting effects of Covid.”

Nick Aemisegger, a board member and manager of the Office of the State Public Defender in Kalispell, addressed the assertion that the warming center’s presence has caused a spike in the homeless population. While he acknowledged there has been a widespread increase, he said it’s part of a nationwide rise in homelessness, during which Montana has seen a 551% increase between 2007 and 2023.

Additionally, Aemisegger noted the changes in the justice system in 2014 that reduced the volume of involuntary commitments to the Montana State Hospital, which has resulted in fewer individuals receiving mental health care.

“In 2014, we had more services –  there were way, way more involuntary commitments filed by the county attorney’s office,” Aemisegger said. “In an ideal world, you’d send them back into the community where they would be hooked up with services, as you all know, those services have dried up. The safety net services we have for behavioral health – especially seriously mentally ill people – is the jail, and that is inhumane. And I don’t think history is going to be kind to us when people look back and see how we treated our mentally ill people. But it’s incredibly visible when you see seriously mentally ill people decompensating on the street. It’s very disturbing when you see that. This isn’t the fault of the warming center.”

Other assertations accused Horn of not communicating with neighbors who are experiencing issues with warming center clients, which board members disputed by showing text message and email exchanges. Nonprofit leaders also argued they were not aware of many complaints until they were brought up at the city council and they weren’t given the opportunity to respond.

Horn proposed a collaborative approach with the city as a more productive alternative to revoking the conditional use permit and said the breakdown in communication could be transformed with a dedicated community homeless resource officer to engage with the homeless community and providers.

“As a community together, we need to focus less on where people should not be and focus a lot more on solutions as to where the homeless community can be to get the help that they need,” Horn said. “The Flathead Warming Center is still at the table, and we still want to work with you.”

Michelle Weinberg, an attorney who spoke on behalf of the Flathead Warming Center, said there were numerous legal ramifications of revoking the conditional use permit, which included violating Montana’s private property rights.

Attorneys also argued there was no real evidence that the warming center violated the criteria laid out in the conditional use permit and implied that if the council chose to revoke the permit, a lawsuit would follow.

“In this situation, litigation is in no one’s interest,” attorney Alan Lerner said.

The city council will deliberate at a special meeting on July 16 at 7 p.m. where they will vote to revoke or amend the conditional use permit, or take no action.