Page 14 - Flathead Beacon // 12.7.16

NEWS
Lakeside Celebrates Opening of Pedestrian Trail Roughly half-mile trail and bridge are more than ve years and $394,000 in the making
BY CLARE MENZEL OF THE BEACON
LAKESIDE—Nearly 50 Lakeside resi- dents gathered on the cloudy morning of Dec. 2 to celebrate the opening of a new bridge and trail reaching from north of Stoner Loop over Stoner Creek to the gated exit of Apostolic Lutheran Church. The trail was completed this fall at a cost of $394,000, and opened to foot tra c and cyclists on Nov. 25.
In 2010, Flathead County inked a plan to administer a Community Transpor- tation Enhancement Program (CTEP), funded with federal tax dollars and managed through the Montana Depart- ment of Transportation. O cials invited communities to compete for funding, and Lakeside resident Debbie Spaulding saw an opportunity to improve her commu- nity. The regular commuter was worried about pedestrian tra c on the busy on the busy U.S. Highway 93 and Blacktail Road, which does not have a shoulder. She organized a group of residents, including members of the nonpro t Lakeside Com- munity Development Foundation, to sub- mit an application.
Dale Lauman and David Fetveit cut a ceremonial ribbon at a new trial through Lakeside on Dec. 2. JUSTIN FRANZ | FLATHEAD BEACON
Foundation, said.
Eighty-eight local donors contributing
between $1 and $2,000 raised the match- ing 13.42 percent, and local businesses, including Sliter’s Lumber & Building Supply, Remedies Lakeside, Blacktail Grocery, Lakeside Town Center, Lake- side Town Center, and the West Shore Convention and Visitors Bureau, raised an additional $7,500 to stretch the trail further north. The Flathead Electric Cooperative’s Round Up For Safety pro- gram, which donates funds from resi- dents who round up their power bill, also contributed to this amount.
“It’s really nice to know everybody can come together,” Thomson said at the rib- bon cutting.
The project’s rst donors, Margaret and Will Baird, stretched the red ribbon across the bridge at the ceremony, while former county commissioner Dale Lau- man and real estate broker David Fetveit cut through the ribbon.
“We love Lakeside, and anything we can do to help,” Margaret Baird said.
clare@ atheadbeacon.com
“This was a very dangerous area,” Lakeside resident Jennifer Drew said at the ribbon cutting. “The bridge is a feat in engineering. It’s a wonderful thing. It’s going to be a way safer, a real plus. It’s a rst-class trail.”
The project was awarded a $300,000 grant, and, because the bridge was CTEP’s nal project, later picked up some additional “crumbs” left over in the bud- get, Mu e Thomson, treasurer of the Lakeside Community Development
Report Shines a Light on White sh’s A ordable Housing ‘Crisis’ Study shows high home prices are pushing families, workers out of White sh
BY DILLON TABISH OF THE BEACON
Outsized home prices and scarce
rental opportunities are forcing many families and workers to live outside of White sh at a growing rate, making it harder for local businesses to retain and nd employees and changing the demographic makeup of the community, according to a new study.
Rees Consulting, Inc., a Colora- do-based rm, conducted surveys and interviews and gathered other research over the last six months for its in-depth assessment of White sh’s a ordable housing needs. The report, which was presented Dec. 5 at a public meeting hosted by the White sh Chamber of Commerce and city leaders, a rms that the community is facing a worsening sit- uation in its a ordable housing.
Though White sh is a highly desirable place to live, it’s increasingly di cult for many of its residents to actually reside in the resort town. From 2000 to 2010, roughly 170 couples with children left White sh. These families included 350 kids between the ages of 5 and 17, accord- ing to the report.
Roughly 56 percent of White sh’s year-round workforce commutes into
town, according to the report.
Kevin Gartland, executive director of
the White sh chamber, said the report shines a light on the full scope of the issue and represents “the rst step in the com- munity’s e ort to address the growing workforce housing crisis.”
The average home sale price in White- sh has increased nearly 7 percent annu- ally for several years while the average rent has jumped 10 percent annually. Meanwhile, average local wages have not kept pace, increasing annually by just 2.5 percent. More than 50 percent of the community’s jobs are in tourism-related industries, which tend to be lower-pay- ing positions that are subject to seasonal uctuations. For example, retail posi- tions, which make up the second largest percentage of local jobs, pay an average wage of less than $27,000 annually.
Among the local workforce, roughly 80 percent of prospective buyers are seeking a home priced under $300,000. Yet the median asking price of new con- dominiums in town averages roughly $400,000, and newer single-family res- idences are selling for roughly $450,000. As a result, “many young families instead purchase in Columbia Falls or Kalispell,” the report states.
Year-round rental units are also in short supply. Property managers have reported less than 2 percent vacancy in recent years, while more rentals are now on six- to nine-month lease terms to capture the peak prices during summer, according to the report. If the current trend continues, the percentage of room- mate households will likely increase as fewer residents will be able to a ord to live alone, the report says.
White sh’s homeownership rate remains higher than average — 65 percent — but it declined 4 percentage points from 2000 to 2010. A loss of community volun- teerism is common in resort areas with similarly high housing costs that force the bulk of employees to live elsewhere, the report said. Emergency services, pub- lic schools and other entities that rely on a strong volunteer base could increasingly feel the e ects, the report said.
White sh has also seen a greater num- ber of retirees or second homeowners move into town in recent years.
These changes are placing an added burden on local businesses to nd and retain workers. Roughly 225 year-round jobs and 140 seasonal jobs went un lled in White sh this summer, accord- ing to the report. Roughly one-third of
employers said they lost a worker or had someone decline a job o er in recent years because they found employment closer to their residence.
The reduction in local workers own- ing homes in their community has impli- cations for both the long-term vibrancy of the town and the sustainability of its downtown and other local businesses, the report said. As the year-round resi- dent base decreases, businesses must rely more strongly on peak visitor seasons.
The report estimated that 980 housing units — roughly 400 for ownership and 580 for rent — are needed in White sh to address the current workforce housing shortage and keep up with future demand through 2020. Of those, roughly 605 units should be provided at more a ord- able prices, meaning roughly $160,000 to $310,000 for households earning between $40,000 and $75,000 annually. Of the rentals, roughly 62 percent of the new units should be priced between $400 to $1,000 a month to accommodate the local workforce.
The report says White sh is “conser- vatively projected” to add roughly 400 jobs through 2020, which will only inten- sify the need for more a ordable housing.
dtabish@ atheadbeacon.com
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DECEMBER 7, 2016 // FLATHEADBEACON.COM