Kalispell planning staff presented Planet 2045 on Tuesday as the city's updated land-use plan to meet the Montana Land Use Planning Act (Senate Bill 382/MALUPA). Staff said the plan would guide annexations, future rezonings and infrastructure investment, and must be adopted by 2026 to comply with state requirements.

In their overview staff said Kalispell's current population is roughly 33,000 and projected growth through 2045 could add about 23,000 residents, which translates to an estimated 9,500 to 10,000 new housing units. The plan prioritizes compact, infill, and corridor-based growth where water and sewer can be extended efficiently, protects environmentally sensitive lands, and identifies a set of housing strategies from which municipalities must adopt a subset under state law.

During extended public comment multiple speakers praised some plan goals but urged clearer and wider public outreach, questioned the practical sequencing of services and infrastructure, and asked which of the 15 optional MALUPA amendments the city intends to adopt or reject. Several residents raised parking and drainage concerns in existing neighborhoods and cautioned against adopting map or zoning changes that could allow higher-density development before services are confirmed. One commenter urged the city to ensure fire, police and school capacity align with anticipated growth and to be strategic about where commercial and industrial uses are placed to avoid concentrated congestion.

Staff and commissioners explained that MALUPA requires a future land-use map (not an immediate zoning map) and that site-specific zoning or annexations will continue to follow public processes; they also described amendment and appeal pathways that allow the plan to be changed later through formal procedures.