Kalispell Council to Decide Flathead Warming Center Fate
Flathead Warming Center leaders on July 15 will respond to allegations that they are not adhering to the provisions of their conditional use permit; public comment will follow. On July 16, council will hold a special session to decide whether to revoke the permit.
By Maggie Dresser
Following months of conversations surrounding the impacts of the Flathead Warming Center — a 50-bed, low-barrier homeless shelter located on North Meridian Road — the nonprofit’s director on Monday will testify at a formal hearing in front of the Kalispell City Council to respond to accusations that her organization is not adhering to the conditions of its permit.
On Monday, July 15, Flathead Warming Center Executive Director Tonya Horn will respond to allegations made by some city councilors who say the criteria outlined in the conditional use permit that the council unanimously approved in 2020 is not being followed. The permit allows the warming center to operate in neighborhood business zone B-1, which is not zoned for a homeless shelter.
Public comment will follow the hearing and the council will hold a special meeting on Tuesday, July 16, when they will decide whether to revoke or amend the conditional use permit, or take no action.
City Manager Doug Russell said in his 12 years of leadership in Kalispell, a conditional use permit has never been revoked.
“I can’t speak to what has happened before I got here, but I’m unaware of anything before that,” Russell told the Beacon. “It’s safe to say we haven’t had this come up in recent history.”
The hearing comes after multiple city council meetings that centered around concerns from residents who accused the warming center of not being a “good neighbor” following disruptions in the neighborhood caused by homeless individuals. The most common complaints about warming center client behavior include loitering, littering, public defecation, a lack of transportation in and out of the neighborhood, trespassing on private property, and other types of criminal activity.
City officials are now threatening to revoke the warming center’s conditional use permit after Councilor Chad Graham accused the organization of not being responsive or accountable following widespread complaints as it originally stated it would be.
Specifically, in accepting the terms of the conditional use permit, Horn agreed that “should any information or representation submitted in the application be incorrect or untrue, I understand that any approval based thereon may be rescinded, and other appropriate action taken.”
According to a May 31 letter from Kalispell City Attorney Johnna Preble addressed to Horn, complaints against the warming center accuse it of increasing the homeless population in the area, causing an uptick in law enforcement calls, and failing “to be protective of … the neighborhood,” as indicated in the permit. The warming center has also been accused of minimizing the seriousness of the loitering issues in the neighborhood.
The saga began in April when Graham requested a work session to discuss neighborhood concerns and impacts related to the warming center and its conditional use permit. Heat maps of law enforcement activity were also requested to compare neighborhood calls around the warming center to other areas in Kalispell.
At a May meeting that drew a slew of residents who filled council chambers, Russell presented law enforcement call analysis data for Kalispell, which included trespassing, disorderly conduct, welfare checks and criminal mischief calls. The data compared and mapped two three-year time periods from 2018 to 2020, which represents the three years before the warming center opened, and 2021 to 2023, which represents the three years after the facility opened.
According to the call data, there was a 73% increase in welfare checks near the warming center over that time compared to a 52% increase citywide. There was also a 28% increase in criminal mischief calls near the warming center compared to a 1.2% citywide increase.
But some councilors and residents criticized the data, saying it was unclear if homeless individuals and warming center clients were responsible for the criminal activity. Homeless advocates also said it was unfair to blame the warming center for socioeconomic factors like shrinking mental health services, the spike in population growth and the lack of housing inventory.
Community members have stood divided over the potential revocation of the permit, providing hours of emotional testimony both in support and opposition of the warming center throughout multiple meetings. Many advocates have praised the warming center for the service it provides for the Flathead Valley while others feel the nonprofit enables unhoused residents.
The Flathead Warming Center will respond to allegations at the July 15 hearing in Kalispell City Council chambers at 7 p.m. Community members will have the opportunity to provide public comment following the hearing and the city council will host 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.
