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    • Kalispell City Council will not move forward with Kalispell Cruise ordinance
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    Kalispell City Council will not move forward with Kalispell Cruise ordinance

    Sakege Posted on

    KALISPELL – The Kalispell City Council held a work session on Monday, October 28, 2024 to discuss concerns with downtown traffic on Friday nights.

    That traffic comes from people who walk down Main Street to show off their cars.

    While drive-up cruises have been going on for decades, the Kalispell Cruise really started in 2020 during COVID-19 as a way for people to get out and connect with the community.

    The event has continued and has generated concern in the community.

    “It’s not just the impact on Main Street. It’s the impact that neighborhoods surrounding the east and west sides of downtown see. It’s not fair that my kids have to have noise cancellation in their rooms,” said one community member during public comment.

    Some of the complaints filed with the city include reckless driving, speeding, burnout and noise.

    Some councilors wanted to see an ordinance or some type of restriction on moving around downtown.

    “However, I think there are real impacts. We have heard about reckless driving and that has certainly been documented with photos and videos, and people who were present and saw it reported it. That’s a big part of this and we can’t keep an eye on it at all times. So that’s a problem. Another part, but a big part, is the noise perspective.” – Ryan Hunter, Kalispell City Council Member

    However, the majority of councilors opposed taking any action.

    “The Kalispell cruise is as American as it gets. I will have no part in taking this away from our people, our citizens who pay for these roads,” said City Councilman Jed Fisher.

    Councilman Sid Daoud said attempting to implement a restriction on cruising is a rights violation and would limit the community’s ability to drive on roads they pay for.

    “I’m going to be vehemently against this and I’m going to do everything in my power to hopefully make sure it doesn’t come to an actual meeting and if it does happen, I’m going to fight tooth and nail,” Daoud said. .

    Many of the public comments were from people who support the cruise.

    Most cruise passengers referred to the fact that it is a few people who cause the problems and that the majority are simply there to have fun.

    “And I think there’s a bad apple in anything you do. I’m just enjoying it because I’m a fourth-generation resident here in the Valley. My grandparents traveled, my parents traveled, I met my wife and I am going to take my children to travel. So whether there’s an ordinance or not, that’s not going to stop me from going out and enjoying something that’s been around for so long.” – comment from one person during the Kalispell City Council meeting

    The Kalispell City Council will not move forward on this issue since the majority of council members spoke out against creating any type of ordinance around the cruise.

    However, they hope to see some self-control on the part of cruisers and see a decrease in problems in the future.

    Sakege
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