Past Projects
Never underestimate the power of community.
Whitefish showed up!
Hundreds of Whitefishians rallied in person and virtually to tell the Whitefish Planning Board and City Council what we want for our town. We rallied, we spoke, we wrote letters and we won! City Council ultimately denied the development in a 5-to-1 vote. We are overwhelmed and humbled to have such amazing neighbors and business owners – y’all are the best! To learn about our first project, read below.
FFRG’s Inaugural Project
Arim Mountain Gateway
The Arim Mountain Gateway development was proposed at the intersection of Big Mountain Road and East Lake Shore Dr. We believe the proposed development did not meet our criteria to honor safety, quality of resources, and retention of our community and character. And, as was apparent by the number of signatures on our petition, letters to the city, and attendance at City Planning meetings, neither did the vast majority of our community.
What was being proposed at the intersection of Big Mountain Rd and East Lakeshore Dr?
Arim Mountain Gateway. Let’s look at what they proposed:
- 318 Residential Units
- 270 Rental Units (Developer will own & lease)
- 24 Family Owner Occupied Units
- 24 Townhomes
- 40,000 sq ft Mixed Use Commercial (Developer will own & lease)
- Over 500 parking spots
- NOT an affordable housing development
- Density will house a minimum of 680 people or 8.2% of the population of Whitefish
- Denser than The Quarry Development
Affordable workforce housing facts
- Despite promising to include 32 “affordable deed-restricted” apartments in their development, deed restrictions were not included in the Housing Mitigation Plan as part of the PUD application, which is required under City regulations. Whitefish City Code 11-1A-5 (B)
- While the Housing Mitigation Plan states that the developer intends to designate 32 of the 270 rental units as affordable, this Plan can simply be amended at a later date with the Zoning Administrator’s approval and allow the developers to provide rentals offsite, pay a fee, or donate land instead of providing the affordable rental units. Whitefish City Code 11-1A-4.
- Again, this amendment would not have to be approved by the City Council.
- Again, they are displacing 8 dwelling units that are already low-rent
- The Developers have submitted a separate and independent application requesting 3.96 acres on the southeast portion of the land be PERMANENTLY changed from residential zoning to COMMERCIAL ZONING. This sets a very dangerous precedent for other landowners to follow suit.
Additional Developments
Montarise Development
Check out the status of the Montarise Development.
Ruis Development
Learn more about the proposed plan.