Wave gives portion of O'Brien Avenue to city

The Wave fitness center has gifted Whitefish ownership of a portion of O’Brien Avenue, and in return the city will bring the street up to standards.

The segment of road passes through a parcel of land recently purchased by The Wave in the Baker Commons subdivision.

The road was constructed on the lot, but was never dedicated to the city. The lot, along with the road, was eventually returned to the bank, which is who The Wave bought the lot from.

The Wave board president Brad Seaman says the board has no immediate plans for the property and that they have set it aside for a possible future expansion.

“The likely use would be for parking,” he said.

Seaman said the board decided to give the road to the city rather than face the possibility that a future landowner removes the street that provides access to its facility.

“We’re trying to give this to you to benefit the city, rather than have this question mark hanging over us,” he said.

City Manager Chuck Stearns told council that typically a street must meet certain standards before the city will accept it — street lights and completed landscaping being two requirements.

Seaman told the city The Wave board doesn’t want to make these improvements, and that they just want to give the city the road.

Stearns described the trees on that section of O’Brien as being in “pretty poor shape” with nine dead and five in poor condition. The boulevard is full of weeds and four street lights are missing, as well.

City council agreed to take on the improvement work, and noted that keeping the road open to the public would be a benefit for both commuters and emergency workers at the nearby Emergency Services Center.

“The elements not up to standard could easily be fixed by the city,” councilor Jen Frandsen said in motioning to approve the deal. “The greater good is in keeping that a publicly accessible road.”

Fire chief Joe Page agreed that the road is an important access point for emergency responders.

“Going north or west, that is the way we head,” Page said. “It cuts down on time and is safer. Heading down that road is a big time saver.”