Trailview neighborhood offers workforce housing

Children riding bikes on the sidewalk while their parents sit on the porch watching. Neighbors who work together at the school or hospital.

Jerry Dunker and Dave Brandt had a vision to create a unique neighborhood of homes where working families could purchase a good home, at a good price. That vision is coming to fruition in Trailview on the eastern edge of Whitefish where the first homeowners are moving into the neighborhood and more houses are under construction.

“We wanted to see a community develop here,” Dunker said. “We want this to be a pocket neighborhood.”

The Trailview subdivision broke ground in January 2019 and last fall work began on constructing the homes in the subdivision, which is planned to include 58 single-family homes. The project is designed as workforce housing with 100% of the homes both as traditional deed-restricted based on income and for local workers.

The first six homes in the subdivision have been completed and two more are under construction. Five of the homes have been sold or are under contract.

Construction is expected to continue into 2023.

A few of the first homeowners moved in this spring to the subdivision located near the intersection of Monegan and Voerman roads. The homes are being constructed in groups moving from the south end toward the north. Sidewalks and roads in the neighborhood are finished and landscaping has been completed in the areas with homes.

Houses in Trailview range from a one-bedroom, one-bath with a garage for $265,000 up to three-bed, two-and-a-half bath with a garage at $318,000. Four different options in houses with different designs, sizes and features are included in the subdivision.

Dunker says the feedback from those looking to purchase homes has been positive. They especially appreciate the attention to detail like plenty of windows for natural light, including a washer and dryer in the homes, mudrooms, air conditioning, and two-car garages for plenty of storage.

Buyers are happy to be able to find a home under $320,000 in Whitefish, he notes, pointing out that as of recently there were only four homes listed for sale in Whitefish under $400,000 and three of those are in Trailview.

“They’re excited to find a single-family home and not a townhouse or condo,” he said. “They’re excited about how good it looks and how they can actually afford a house in Whitefish.”

Homes are to be constructed in clusters of 10 surrounding small parkettes.

The north end of the project includes a park of 1.56 acres dedicated to the city for future development. An extension of the city’s pedestrian path has already been completed on the western boundary of the subdivision from Voerman Road connecting to the city’s Rocksund Trail.

Finding a home in the $300,000 price range in Whitefish has been a challenge for many years, but the housing market seems to be even more challenging right now at any price.

Kristin Zucherman, with Engel and Volkers, is the real estate agent assisting in the sales of the homes.

Other than Trailview, Zucherman says it’s impossible to find a new construction single-family home in the price range of those in the subdivision.

“The fun part is actually seeing people move in,” Zucherman said. “It’s refreshing to be able to show people homes that are move-in ready in this price range. Homes that are worry-free and they don’t have to have extra money to fix things up.”

Recently there were just 96 single-family homes available in Whitefish for sale and there were another 115 under contract to sell. Last year at this time, according to Zucherman, there were 159 single-family homes on the market and only 44 under contract.

Trailview subdivision was approved prior to the City of Whitefish enacting its inclusionary zoning Legacy Homes Program that now requires 20% of all new residential development to include deed-restricted affordable housing.

Dunker, who had lived in other western resort communities previously, began working on creating the subdivision even though he didn’t have any experience in development because he wanted to see Whitefish keep its community feel.

“We’re the first single-family home development in Whitefish that is being completed from the subdivision to the construction of the homes,” he said. “That is the only way we could create housing for people who work here and want to live here.”

Restrictions on at least half of the homes require that homeowners meet certain income guidelines for purchasing the homes and they must be used as primary residences.

Trailview is working with the Whitefish Housing Authority to qualify buyers for the homes, and based on deed-restrictions resale pricing of homes will be set by the housing authority and is limited to a 3% annual appreciation of the purchase price.

Both Dunker and Zucherman note that while interest in Trailview has been strong and while there have already been several sales, there is some misconceptions from potential buyers who wrongly assume they make too much to qualify for one of the houses.

“Half of the homes do not have to have an income maximum or limit,” Dunker notes. “We’re hoping to fill all of them with buyers that fall within the income limits, but to keep the project moving forward we do have the ability to sell half of the homes without the limits.”

For more information, visit www.trailviewhomes.com or contact or contact Zuckerman, with at 406-291-0778.