Flathead Warming Center Reaches Agreement with City of Kalispell to Remain Open
Homeless shelter staff agree to keep open lines of communication with neighbors while the City of Kalispell must pay $140,000 in attorney fees and designate the city manager as a point person to address the public's concerns
By Maggie Dresser
The Flathead Warming Center and the City of Kalispell have reached an agreement to reinstate the 50-bed, low barrier homeless shelter’s conditional use permit and allow for its permanent operation following months of court proceedings after the city council voted to revoke the permit last year.
Kalispell city councilors, however, must pass a resolution to ratify the agreement, which was reached following 13 hours of mediation on Feb. 25, or the lawsuit will proceed to trial in March 2026.
“It is a victory for the Warming Center that ensures its continuing existence and this is an opportunity to turn the corner with the City of Kalispell so that we can build on some reconciliation and forgiveness and move forward together as a community to help the homeless people that everybody has an interest in assisting,” Institute for Justice Senior Attorney Jeff Rowes said during a Feb. 26 press conference.
A federal judge in November issued a preliminary injunction that allowed the Warming Center to remain open through the remainder of court proceedings after the Texas-based Institute for Justice filed a lawsuit against the city.
Following several months of public meetings last year, the Kalispell City Council revoked the Warming Center’s conditional use permit in September, citing widespread complaints from neighbors and accusing the homeless shelter’s leaders of not following the criteria outlined in the permit.
As part of the agreement, Warming Center officials agree to improve the relationship with the neighborhood, which includes installing open lines of communication via phone, email and on Warming Center’s website to be available for complaints. The board of directors will also host a quarterly public meeting that neighbors are encouraged to attend, and staff will conduct periodic cleanup patrols within a quarter mile of the facility.
The Warming Center last month released a community connection guide introducing plans for a new law enforcement liaison position along with an intent to host community meetings, which would operate as an open forum allowing neighbors to meet with staff.
Following complaints surrounding an absence of transportation in the area, Warming Center staff will also continue to seek grant funding to provide transportation for guests as Flathead County’s public transportation system remains limited.
In exchange, city officials have agreed to pay $140,000 in attorney fees while issuing a public apology to Flathead Warming Center Executive Director Tonya Horn for falsely accusing her of perjury and lying in the conditional use permit’s application process.
Kalispell City Manager Doug Russell has also been designated the point of contact for public members wishing to address homeless issues.
“Working with the homeless and helping with the homeless has been very divisive in our community and the point is that no one wins when we’re divisive in our community … we really need our community to come together and to look at real solutions that will help our entire community,” Horn said during the press conference.
The agreement comes almost a year after complaints prompted several months of public meetings where proponents of the permit’s revocation blamed the Warming Center for attracting homeless individuals to the neighborhood.
Councilors accused the homeless shelter’s leaders of not abiding by criteria outlined in the conditional use permit, which operates on North Meridian Road in neighborhood business zone B-1.
Institute for Justice attorneys argued the Warming Center has never been cited for violating any laws and its permit to operate was granted in full compliance with the city’s zoning rules and their accusations are baseless.
“We brought a federal lawsuit against the City of Kalispell back in the fall to vindicate the Warming Center’s property rights, its equal protection rights and its due process rights under the U.S. and Montana constitutions after the city revoked its permit despite the fact that the Warming Center had not violated any of Kalispell’s laws or violated any conditions of its permit,” Rowes said.