Bike and pedestrian plan receives approval
Whitefish now has an updated guide in planning for the future of its trails, paths and sidewalks around town.
The plan known as Connect Whitefish focuses on creating greater connectivity and safety improvements for the city’s bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure. The document is intended to help guide city decision-makers over the next 20 years.
City Council Jan. 3 approved a resolution of intent to adopt the document and was set Tuesday to approval the final draft of the plan.
Councilor Richard Hildner praised the plan as one the city can use moving forward.
“It’s clearly not a sit on the shelf type of plan,” he said.
Councilor Jen Frandsen commended city staff and WGM Group, who created the plan for the city, for getting input from the residents on what should be included in the plan.
“This planning process was fantastic for involving the public,” she said
The plan looks at the current state of bicycle and pedestrian options, uses input from the community to choose priorities and then offers suggestions on how to achieve selected goals. Whitefish’s pedestrian and bicycle network includes about 41 miles of sidewalk, 13 miles of shared use paths and two miles of bike lanes on city streets.
The plan outlines $23.5 million worth of trail development in Whitefish over the next 20 years. The plan makes 11 policy recommendations and divides trail projects into three tiers of priority — immediate consideration in the next five years; intermediate for 5-10 years; and long-range for 10-20 years.
The top priority is the completion of the Whitefish River Trail as a 10-foot-wide shared-use path with lighting and wayfinding signage from the Skye Park footbridge to JP Road. It also seeks to prioritize connections between the river trail and existing routes that provide safe access to downtown, schools and parks.
Roughly $5.6 million for trail development is included in the first tier. The highest ticket item is the estimated $2.3 million trail from Lion Mountain Road to Twin Bridges Road, which is expected to be completed by the Montana Department of Transportation.
The connectivity category includes 57 recommended projects. The top seven projects on the list involve improvements to the Whitefish River Trail. The top project is listed as extending the shared use path along the river between Second Street and Railway Street, connecting the trail from Kay Beller Park to the BNSF loop, at an estimated cost of $113,000.
There are 28 recommended projects under the safety category. Some safety concerns come from a lack of standardized design guidelines, the plan states, such as narrow bike lanes, unsafe path crossings and dysfunctional bike racks. The plan recommends adopting guidelines to improve safety, along with developing a plan for uncontrolled intersections.
On maintenance, the plan recommends the city budget a minimum of $2,000 per mile for short-term operations and maintenance of asphalt paths and develop a long-term maintenance schedule for asphalt paths and provide annual funding of about $3,700 per mile to meet the minimum requirements for preservation of existing facilities.
The plan notes that cost estimates are for planning purposes only.
Funding for bicycle and pedestrian projects will become increasingly more difficult in the future. The plan notes that federal earmarks for paths is unlikely, state Community Transportation Enhancement Program grants no longer exist, and sunset of the city’s tax increment finance district in 2020 will make funding a challenge. It suggests creating a new TIF district for urban renewal based on the benefits of a connected river trail. It also suggests creating public/private partnerships to help fund large projects.
The city adopted its current bicycle and pedestrian master plan in 1998 and adopted amendments to the plan in 2003 and 2007.