Growing support for sidewalk improvements in Libby

There are stretches of Libby with easily accessible sidewalks. They just don’t tend to go anywhere.

Resident Mark Andreessen calls them sidewalks to “nowhere” and he has begun petitioning local governments to stitch the various lengths together. He calls the completed circuit the “Logger Trail.”

“It’s just that there’s no connectivity,” Andreessen said before Libby City Council on May 17. “You get that section of the sidewalk, but it goes to nowhere. It’s a beautiful sidewalk, but it goes to nowhere.”

Andreessen, who successfully sought city councilors’ support in the venture, said an integrated system of sidewalks would improve safety, encourage exercise and cater to the region’s aging population. Anecdotally, Andreessen saw the most need in and around the city’s schools, where students often walk along the side of the road. Fifth Street was another such spot.

“The downtown people use that to walk out to the port authority, to the trail system. You’re always seeing people walking in the middle of the road on Fifth Street,” Andreessen said. “A lot of these places I’ve looked at, it appears you can put an ADA-compliant sidewalk there. It just needs to be engineered into the existing lay of the land.”

As an example of success, he pointed to the stretches of sidewalk on Balsam Street and Louisiana Avenue.

“Louisiana Avenue has a beautiful section that’s gone through — it just needs to be tied into everything,” he said.

It also could be a boon for tourists and the businesses that rely upon visitors. Andreessen painted a picture of out-of-towners strolling city streets, guided by signs to local points of interest. By his estimation, the city needs 10,925.8 feet or about two miles of sidewalk to complete the route.

That drew praise from Tina Oliphant of the Kootenai River Development Council. You can market what is known as “walkability,” she said.

“It’s a comprehensive plan, but if you had this you could claim walkability, community walkability,” Oliphant said, telling city councilors that they could brand it and produce maps.

While backing the rough proposal, Oliphant said its ambitiousness required working with a slew of stakeholders, some of which, like the port authority, have their own trail projects in the works.

Mayor Brent Teske made a similar point. Property owners will need to get on board, he said, as will state officials. Helena has not shown much interest in partnering with the city on sidewalk projects as of late, according to Teske.

“Some of that is state highway and state right-of-way,” he said. “I’ve been asking the state for a couple of years now as there’s no sidewalk here on the east side of the street, people walk down the sidewalk and cross the four-lane [highway]. I’ve seen a lot of near accidents.”

There are other potential roadblocks. Andreessen said he recognized the infrastructure improvement would require more than a one-time investment. Maintenance costs will crop up, he said. Sidewalks will need plowing in the winter months as well.

He also was unsure how much city councilors would be willing to put into a sidewalk project. When Teske raised the idea of seeking grants, City Councilor Kristin Smith lobbied for the development of a comprehensive sidewalk plans.

A document outlining the city’s vision might make it more appealing to organizations meting out grants.

“Take this and adopt a sidewalk improvement plan and by having that we can [go] to the state or other funders and say, ‘Look, we’ve really thought about this,’” Smith said.

Teske took to the idea, saying it would let the city prioritize different neighborhoods and stretches of roadways.

City councilors also encouraged Andreessen to meet with the Lincoln County Board of Commissioners. The county often partners with the city on infrastructure projects, Smith told him.

As for Libby, City Councilor Gary Beach agreed to dig up the municipality’s previous sidewalk plan and organize a meeting of the council’s lights, streets and sidewalks committee.

“It’s going to [involve] a number of different property owners, but I think it’s doable,” Teske said.” Especially if you start going now.”

Andreessen thanked the city councilors for their support.

“I’m just thinking, in the long run, it will be a definite improvement for Libby, for people to come and see what a beautiful place we live in,” he said.