Anderson, Phillips appointed to planning board

Zak Anderson and Chad Phillips have been chosen to fill two seats on the Whitefish City-County Planning Board from a pool of seven applicants.

Anderson was up for reappointment and the other position became available when former board member Ken Stein moved outside of city limits. While the planning board represents city and county residents, a city council-appointed seat can only be occupied by a current city resident.

City councilors unanimously reappointed Anderson at their Jan. 7 meeting, and Mayor John Muhlfeld appointed Phillips.

Phillips is a licensed architect and has been a developer since 1999. He founded Phillips Architecture and Planning in Bend, Ore., in 1991. The firm has been involved in more than 1,000 projects, including custom homes, commercial structures and master planning.

In his application letter, Phillips says he gained valuable experience while working in Bend as it boomed through the 1990s and early 2000s.

“The mountain resort community grew from 18,000 people to approximately 90,000 in that time period,” he said. “A lot of what I experienced and served in Bend will be repeated here in Whitefish in the next growth cycle. To maintain the heart and joy of Whitefish I would be delighted to bring my past experience and passion to our community.”

Muhlfeld said he was looking to add balance to the board through his appointment of Phillips.

“I’m impressed with Chad’s skill set as a licensed architect and master planner,” Muhlfeld said. “His experience in Bend will bring some lessons learned in growing pains to Whitefish.”

Anderson, 34, is a co-founder of the custom ski design business Montana Ski Company. He earned a business administration degree from the University of Montana.

Of the nine-member board, council appoints two official members who live within the city limits, and may be employed by or hold public office in the city. The mayor appoints two citizen members who reside within the city limits.

County Commissioners appoint two official members who live outside the city limits but within the jurisdictional area of the planning board. They also appoint two citizen members.

Terms on the planning board are for two years.