Wellness center allowed at Karrow project

A wellness center will be allowed as one of the businesses to potentially operate in a mixed-use development that looks to transform the former Idaho Timber site.

City Council approved allowing for a “commercial recreational facility” on the site to accommodate a planned public wellness center that developers have described as possibly containing services related to health and fitness with a focus on “recreation, education and medical services.”

95 Karrow LLC had requested to amend a planned unit development overlay to add “clubs, private and semi-private recreational facilities” to the list of permitted uses within the project planned for the north end of Karrow Avenue.

However, concerns arose during the public hearing before Council that using the term club might not be appropriate.

Mayre Flowers said club implies that the business could be private and not open to the public.

“This seems to be an appropriate use,” Flowers said. “But the use of club and its definition in the code don’t make sense.”

Casey Malmquist, one of the partners in the project, said in planning to develop the property a potential tenant was interested in creating a wellness center on the property. Though a fee to access the center may be charged, it would be open to the public.

Malmquist reiterated that the entire development would be open to the public including allowing for public access to the adjacent Whitefish River.

“We plan to construct a mile of the bike path along the river and allow for access,” he said. “It will be open to the public.”

The wellness center is planned to share the Marketplace building, occupying about 24,500 square feet of the planned 40,640-square-foot building on the site.

Plans for the 95 Karrow property include developing the 22-acre site to include residential units, professional offices, limited retail, artisan workshop space, studio and gallery space and personal service businesses.

In January 2018 City Council approved a preliminary plat and PUD for 95 Karrow. Since then the developer has been working toward final plat and meeting the conditions of that approval, according to city planning staff.