Council OK's subdivision at former Plum Creek sawmill, planer, site
The Columbia Falls City Council approved a new subdivision Monday night that has the potential to bring a host of new businesses to the city.
Columbia Rising LLC, has plans for a 19-unit industrial park subdivision at the former Plum Creek sawmill and planer site just north of the Truck Route. When Weyerhaeuser merged with Plum Creek a few years ago, it shuttered both mills and sold the property to Columbia Rising.
Anchor tenant SmartLam has moved into the former planer building, but the remainder of the 36.58 acres site, which is mostly an asphalt pad or gravel that was used to store lumber, can now be developed.
The site has city services and rail access, making it an attractive location for prospective businesses.
“We’re excited about bring a modern industrial park to Columbia Falls,” said Columbia Rising representative and SmartLam owner Casey Malmquist.
Malmquist noted that the park has several attractive qualities for businesses, including set costs and utilities onsite. Right now, businesses have been setting up shop in places like U.S. Highway 2 at LaSalle and have to build their own structure, arrange for utilities and other services.
The industrial park will make it easier for businesses to come here and have set costs, he noted.
“It’s a plug and play place to business in the Flathead,” he said.
The site does not include the former Cedar Palace, though it does include a wedge of land just east of the palace, which was formerly parkland.
No one spoke in opposition to the subdivision, though one neighbor asked council to make assurances that it would have adequate parking. The council, prior to approving the subdivision, relaxed some parking requirements, noting that it takes fewer workers than it used to run plants and small businesses.
The city is also looking to help the park with services in the future. It’s creating a targeted economic development district for the park area. A TEDD, as it’s known, works like a tax increment finance district, only for industrial parks.
It uses the additional tax revenue after development occurs to provide infrastructure and other amenities to the park going forward. The park needs city sewer and water upgrades.
The park, as a condition for the subdivision, will also pay for improvements to the intersection of the Truck Route and Sixth Avenue West.
The city is also pursuing federal grants that could help with infrastructure at the site. It’s eligible for economic development authority grants due to job losses from the closure of the former Plum Creek mills.