On Nucleus, something new, condos with great views

Nucleus Avenue is now a player in the Columbia Falls housing market.

Developer Mick Ruis is selling the units he built next to the Columbia Bar as condominium units, rather than renting them out as apartments as first envisioned.

The condos mark a noted change in land use on Nucleus Avenue, as there has been virtually no residential development on Columbia Falls Main Street up to this point. But having condos in many ways make sense, noted real estate agents Richard Thomas and Stefanie Hanson – they’re within walking distance to many amenities, like grocery stores, city parks and restaurants, and they’re in high demand.

Interest in the units has been brisk. Of the eight units in the building, two are already under contract and they’ve only been listed a couple of weeks, said Thomas and Hanson, who are representing the property for Ruis.

They said one unit sold to a retired couple and the other unit was sold to a party interested in it as an investment as a vacation rental. In fact, they see the units being utilized as vacation rental investment properties, more than permanent households.

The vacation rental market in the Flathead Valley has taken off in recent years as visitation to Glacier National Park has surged to 3 million or more visitors for the past two summers.

In the Columbia Falls area alone, the vacation rental site VRBO lists 57 properties, ranging from furnished houses to cabins.

The condominiums on Nucleus are 1,000 square feet for the smallest unit, which has two bedrooms and one bath, to just over 1,500 square feet for the larger units, which have two bedrooms and two baths and faux hardwood floors. They come equipped with all appliances, including dishwasher and washer and dryer. Each unit also has a gas fireplace and gas studs on the patio for a barbecue grill. The condos have private patios with expansive views of the surrounding mountains as well as a bird’s eye view of Columbia Falls.

The list price of the units is $265,000, a bit less for the smaller unit.

Ruis will continue to own the commercial space on the bottom floor. The units are accessible by an elevator or stairs and each has a sheltered parking space for one vehicle, with additional parking in the rear.

Just around the corner, Ruis is building a similar project at 35 Fifth Street. That 18-unit building will also be condominiums, Thomas and Hanson noted.

That project is an investment of about $3 million.

Thomas said he’s had a long relationship with Ruis — he helped him acquire his first real estate holdings in the area some 20 years ago. Thomas grew up in Columbia Falls. He noted that when he was in seventh grade, his idea to name a new park in Columbia Falls stuck — the name Pinewood Park was his idea. Hanson is also a Flathead Valley native, growing up in Kalispell. She also co-owns Beckman’s furniture in Kalispell. The model units are furnished with pieces from the store.