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City staff outlines tasks tied to SB382 grant, housing study and RAISE open house; consultants and RFPs forthcoming
Summary
Columbia Falls staff reported receiving a state grant under SB382 (smaller than initial expectation) and described next steps: present an initial draft housing-study report in a joint work session with planning commission, prepare RFPs for consultants, and host a RAISE open house February 19 to present 30% designs.
City staff updated the council on progress tied to Senate Bill 382 grant funding and the city’s housing study work, and announced an upcoming RAISE open house.
Staff reported the SB382 allocation to Columbia Falls will be about $391,000, lower than an earlier expectation of $500,000. The staff member said some other cities have completed more of their work and the city is negotiating to see if additional grant funds can be made available. On housing planning, staff said a draft housing-study report is complete and proposed a joint work session with the planning commission (proposed dates: Feb. 24 or Feb. 25) to review the initial draft with the consultant; the planning commission will later review and make a recommendation before the council adopts a final report.
Staff outlined an immediate list of consultant tasks and procurement needs under SB382: land-use planning updates (growth policy), engineering studies for water, sewer and stormwater, transportation consulting and updates to zoning and subdivision regulations. The staff member said department capacity is limited and the city will issue RFPs for consultants and engineers to meet the grant-backed timeline, noting statutory program deadlines (the transcript references a May 2026 deadline for some program deliverables).
Staff also announced a public open house for the RAISE grant project on Wednesday, Feb. 19 from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. in the council chambers; engineers will present 30% design concepts and gather community feedback with the goal of bidding the project in July.
Councilors discussed scheduling for the housing-study work session and agreed the proposed dates would be offered to the planning commission.
