County to consider Grant Creek Crossing district, infrastructure

Martin Kidston

(Missoula Current) Missoula County will explore solutions to a number of concerns raised around the proposed establishment of a targeted economic development district on property that most agree could be a highly valuable community asset.

Located at the corner of North Reserve Street and Interstate 90, the parcel covers 84 acres and is mostly vacant, less a single storage facility. Given the property's location near the urban core, advocates of redevelopment say storage isn't the highest and best use of the property.

"But that's the type of development you'd get without the investment of infrastructure in this area," said Brad Archibald, a consultant for the county. "We need to invest in the efficient delivery of infrastructure to afford proper development in this area, one that supports the development of attainable workforce housing."

While a number of potential projects have already been envisioned for the Grant Creek Crossing property, the parcel remains mostly vacant and lacks the infrastructure needed to support urban development.

The county's proposed comprehensive development plan envisions redevelopment that brings in value-added industries that support both economic growth and workforce housing. The county last month declared the area infrastructure deficient and adopted a resolution of necessity.

Now, it's looking to establish a targeted economic development district (TEDD) for the property. Doing so would capture tax increment and enable the county to reinvest that back into the cost of public infrastructure. The proposal was recommended for approval by the Consolidated Planning Board.

"The TEDD designation enables local governments to address infrastructure deficiencies that impede economic growth," said Flanna McLarty, the land and economic development specialist for the county. "The creation of the Grant Creek Crossing TEDD will enable the county to fund infrastructure such as transportation, water, wastewater, utilities, workforce housing and life-safety services."

While there are few opponents of developing the property given its prime location, some issues remain including potential traffic impacts on North Reserve, and the impacts that a TEDD could have on both the Hellgate School District and the Missoula Rural Fire District.

"Although we're good at overcoming the challenges we face, those challenges come at a cost to the fire district and ultimately the taxpayer," said Paul Finlay, chief of the Missoula Rural Fire District. "We're facing a potential sixth TEDD in our district. They've placed a significant unfunded workload and liability on the fire district, which is an impact to our taxpayers."

The Hellgate School District expressed similar concerns in light of what it described as the Legislature's failure to meet the needs of public education in Montana.

But county officials said that the adoption of the TEDD and the comprehensive development plan would consider such concerns. The county will give the proposal final consideration next month.

"I believe there are solutions to this. In no way would we move forward without figuring those things out," said Commissioner Josh Slotnick. "If you look around the greater Missoula area, tax increment financing has been a spectacularly successful tool. I also understand there are real impacts. This isn't a binary yes or no. We can mitigate the impacts by working together."