Board gives OK to greenhouse plans for high school
The Whitefish Planning Board on Thursday recommended approval of a conditional use permit for a new greenhouse and outdoor learning center on the Whitefish High School campus.
Speaking to the board, Whitefish School District Superintendent Heather Davis Schmidt described the project as “a meaningful, experiential learning center for students where students are learning and experiencing hands-on the types of projects that they might experience in the real world.”
The board voted to recommend approval in a 5-1 vote, with John Ellis dissenting.
Ellis argued that an adjacent lot on Seventh Street would be a better location for the outdoor learning center.
Davis Schmidt said the location was chosen as to not complicate traffic issues around Muldown Elementary School.
The school district voted in April to move forward with plans for the Center for Applied Sustainability, hoping to replace the existing dilapidated greenhouse. The outdoor learning center will be located on 11 acres northwest of the high school and feature a greenhouse and learning center, an outdoor class space, an experimental forest zone, a weltland and native plant area and a vegetable garden.
A full-time maintenance position will be added to take care of the facility through the summers, and Davis Schmidt said the district also plans on offering future internship opportunities for college students.
Board member Melissa Picoli Philips said she thought the learning center would be a great addition to the high school campus and offered ideas on how to integrate it with the community.
Philips said the nearby retirement home could visit the gardens as part of recreational programs and fresh produce grown by students could be given to care facilities in town.
Designs for the center include sustainable energy practices. The greenhouse will be heated with a form of annualized geosolar energy and the classroom by geothermal energy, and solar energy will be used to meet electrical demands.
“The idea for this building is to be as energy efficient as possible,” Matt Lawrence of Montana Creative architecture + design said.
A contract with Montana Creative was approved for design of the estimated $1.2 million project, which will be paid for through private donations. An initial $35,000 student fundraiser and a matching donation by Whitefish resident Richard Atkinson has been the financial foundation for the project. Davis Schmidt said about $300,000 will be required for soft start-up costs.
A conditional use permit is required because more than one principal use is proposed on the property and the school is already a conditional use in the WR-1 zoning district.
The request will go before City Council on Aug. 1.