We did it! And against some significant odds. So now what?
The people of Whitefish—residents, business owners, service industry employees, skiers, hikers and others from all walks of Whitefish life—joined together to help defeat the proposed Mountain Gateway development.
We can be proud of our City Council for making the right decision on a highly complex issue, which included multiple rezoning and zoning variance requests, city annexation and others. They listened closely to the citizens they represent, who responded en masse—in-person and online—to express their heartfelt views.
But there’s no cause for celebration. There is no basking in the satisfaction of a hard-fought victory. There is harder work to be done to address Whitefish’s affordable and workforce housing challenge, which cannot be solved by developers sprinkling a few units into their projects resulting in an ill-conceived, patchwork solution.
Flathead Families for Responsible Growth (FFRG), the group that formed to mobilize the community in opposition to Mountain Gateway, stands ready to help with ideas and resources, and say ‘yes’ to viable alternatives that will provide long-term solutions.
Why Not Mountain Gateway?
Mountain Gateway was simply not an affordable workforce housing project. It was a massive, high-density residential and commercial development proposed for the worst possible location. The project clearly overwhelmed existing infrastructure and provided a minimal number of deed-restricted units as a quick fix to meet a community benefit requirement. It would not have scratched the surface of addressing the real workforce housing need.
It also presented very serious emergency egress and ongoing traffic issues that would have crippled our community. And, while property owners have a clear right to develop their land, they must do as permitted by their current zoning classification or responsible rezoning applications. Mountain Gateway did neither.
What Mountain Gateway did do was to focus another bright spotlight on affordable workforce housing in Whitefish and identify it as a community issue. We need to address the issue as a community, as we have done with so many other initiatives. The Whitefish Community Foundation stands as our shining example of how we can join together to create positive, meaningful change.
FFRG’s Work Will Continue
FFRG carries on. Our community’s strong support has inspired FFRG and reinforced our commitment to ensure responsible development and address the needs of our entire community, which includes affordable workforce housing. Safety and traffic also are important issues, and we need to find a way to contribute and work with city leadership to create solutions.
In fact, FFRG has already taken steps to address the workforce housing need.
The group will also be focused on other developments in our town to ensure they are not putting undo strain on our limited existing infrastructure.
It’s undeniable. Growth is necessary. Entities that stop growing—whether they’re individuals, companies or municipalities—languish and wither away. On the other hand, growth cannot be reckless and irresponsible. It must be thoughtful, well-conceived and organized.
As a community, we should be proactive in ensuring that our growth has these qualities and work together to identify solutions that strengthen our well-being and focus on preserving what keeps Whitefish special.