Kalispell is a dynamic community located within a thirty-minute drive of Flathead Lake, Whitefish Mountain Ski Resort, Glacier National Park, several National and State forests and parks, and the Bob Marshall Wilderness area. Kalispell is the retail, professional, medical, and governmental center of the Flathead Valley serving approximately 140,000 people in Northwest Montana. Between 2000 and 2010 the population of Kalispell increased 40% to 19,927. While the growth of the previous decade has slowed with the nation's economy, investment in the City of Kalispell continues and tourism remains a strong economic driver for the region.