October 2022 - Flathead Beacon
Elections| Flathead Beacon
A new 160-foot-tall storage tank will water Kalispell’s continued growth| Flathead Beacon
As a lawsuit proceeds between the nonprofit Flathead Warming Center and the city of Kalispell, the local low-barrier homeless shelter on Tuesday released a community connection guide introducing plans for a new law-enforcement liaison position and announcing its intent to host periodic community meetings. The guide also delineates some of the center’s standards for ways the community can […]| Flathead Beacon
In a partnership with the Institute for Justice (IJ), a Texas-based nonprofit, public interest law firm, the Flathead Warming Center has filed a federal lawsuit against the City of Kalispell after officials revoked the low-barrier homeless shelter’s conditional use permit last month. Attorneys with the institute on Wednesday announced the lawsuit during a press conference […]| Flathead Beacon
The Kalispell City Council on Tuesday night unanimously voted to postpone a decision that could potentially close the Flathead Warming Center, a move the city officials said would allow nonprofit leaders and residents who have complained about its impacts a chance to collaborate on a solution. Following months of conversations surrounding accusations from the […]| Flathead Beacon
The Kalispell City Council on Monday night reviewed a conditional use permit for the Flathead Warming Center, which was approved in 2020, to determine if the low-barrier homeless shelter is complying with guidelines and if it’s appropriate to amend or revoke the permit. Prompted by a high volume of complaints from neighbors and business owners […]| Flathead Beacon
The Kalispell City Council will host a work session in May to brainstorm potential solutions surrounding homelessness within the municipality, which officials say continues to disrupt businesses operations and absorbs law enforcement and first responder resources. Councilor Chad Graham requested the future work session at the April 1 council meeting and said he was concerned […]| Flathead Beacon
The Kalispell Public Schools (KPS) will move forward with the creation of two in-district charter schools after the Montana Board of Public Education last week approved two of the district’s four charter proposals. The board green-lighted Kalispell Rising Wolf Charter and Flathead PACE Academy Charter, two high school charter programs that will be located within […]| Flathead Beacon
In 2013, the Marion School, a small public elementary and middle school in rural Flathead County, enrolled 101 students from kindergarten through eighth grade. The school, which pulls students from in and around Marion — up to Ashley Lake and down to the borders with Lincoln and Lake counties — prided itself on its small […]| Flathead Beacon
After Lakeside Elementary School found itself without a single special education teacher ahead of the 2023-24 school year, the school’s principal, Steffanie Broyles, moved her office into one of the special education classrooms. That way, students could come to Broyles for extra support as substitute teachers oversaw the classrooms once staffed by certified special education […]| Flathead Beacon
“I just think there could be a lot of different ways to justify self-defense,” Katie Clarke, a member of the Whitefish School Board, said, sitting around a table in the board’s meeting room at a policy committee meeting in mid-July. “Yeah,” Whitefish School District Superintendent Dave Means said. “This is going to be really difficult […]| Flathead Beacon
The $1.5 million high school levy intended to fund academic programs, technology, curriculum, salaries, and general operations for the Kalispell public high school district met a resounding defeat at the hands of voters Tuesday night. Preliminary results of the Kalispell Public Schools (KPS) elections provided early Wednesday morning showed the levy garnering just 5,706 votes […]| Flathead Beacon
For the second time in nine months, voters shot down a bond proposal to renovate Deer Park School, the oldest continually running school in Flathead County. Mail ballots for the $1.85 million bond were due May 22, and the final tally came in at 203 votes against and 165 in favor. The bond would have […]| Flathead Beacon
Voters rejected the West Valley School’s effort to pass a $3.5-million bond to fund a school expansion last Tuesday. District residents voted the measure down 678 to 422. West Valley School District Superintendent Todd Fiske said he was pleased by the high voter turnout, coming in at roughly 56 percent, but he had hoped for […]| Flathead Beacon
“It’s been a long haul. Actually, it’s been an almost two-year process,” says Superintendent Russell Kinzer, “We’re definitely a little tired.” And a little disappointed. Bigfork’s Board of Trustees put out a request to voters; $11.1 to update the high school and $5.5 million for the elementary school. The high school bond failed, but the […]| Flathead Beacon
For Principal Kerry Drown, one question hangs over the future of Whitefish High School: “Where do we put all of these kids?” Drown sits at the helm of the city’s public high school, which has seen an 18% enrollment increase over the past decade and is now pushing the limits of its building’s capacity. In […]| Flathead Beacon
The Whitefish School District on Dec. 14 hosted a community engagement meeting to discuss ongoing plans for the expansion of Whitefish High School. At the meeting, architecture firm Cushing Terrell presented three possible concepts for the expansion of the high school building and two concepts for an expanded athletic complex. Parents, educators and local stakeholders […]| Flathead Beacon
Voters have rejected a $21.5 million school bond to renovate Whitefish High School. When all the votes were tallied on Thursday, 2,551 were opposed to the bond and 1,796 were for it. Superintendent Jerry House said he was disappointed with the decision and now must look for other ways to address the school’s needs. “Honestly, […]| Flathead Beacon
For some folks, especially Montana folks, choosing the outdoors isn’t so much a choice as it is an expression of place. Even in modern Montana cities — Billings, Missoula, Great Falls, Bozeman — people remain closely connected to the outdoors. That’s not where I grew up, however. Like many Montana newcomers, I was born in […]| Flathead Beacon
A 37-year-old man accused of killing two Bigfork residents in their home last October pleaded not guilty Thursday to two charges of deliberate homicide, a third felony charge of tampering with or fabricating evidence and a fourth felony charge of criminal possession of dangerous drugs. Derrick James Jackson entered the pleas during a Feb. 16 […]| Flathead Beacon
Officials with the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks still don’t know how a nonnative brown trout ended up in the Flathead River upstream of Pressentine Fishing Access last month. But given the river system’s history of circumventing brown trout invasions, they say the recent detection was most likely the result of an illegal […]| Flathead Beacon
Montana homeowners’ property taxes were complicated before the 2025 Legislature convened in January. Now, they’re, according to one state senator, the “most complicated” in the nation. Yep, you read that right: More – not less – complicated. (With taxes, most people prefer “less.”) To determine your residential property taxes, you’ll now need a compass, protractor, sextant and […]| Flathead Beacon
After a multi-year fight against former President Joe Biden’s energy, climate and environmental policies, Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen has corralled 18 other Republican attorneys general to back President Donald Trump and his energy policies. Knudsen, who has led the Montana Department of Justice since 2021, is attempting to enter the judicial ring in a […]| Flathead Beacon
Kalispell Where: 115 Stryker Peak Tr. Price: $630,000 What: Three-bedroom, two-bath home Square Feet: 1,657 This lovely home sits on a large corner lot and features a bright and open floorplan, vaulted ceilings, stainless steel appliances, granite counters, and a large island. Outside is a covered patio, fenced backyard, fire pit and underground sprinklers. […]| Flathead Beacon
For the second year in a row, I felt drawn to celebrate America’s Independence Day in the Yaak. And it was glorious. The day’s celebration kicked off at half past noon with a parade along Highway 508 that lined up between the Yaak River Tavern & Mercantile and the Dirty Shame Saloon. There were pickups […]| Flathead Beacon
When U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins announced last month that the administration was taking steps to rescind a decades-old policy to restrict road building and timber harvests on 58.5 million acres of national forest lands, she justified it as another step by the Trump administration to remove “absurd obstacles” that have stymied forest […]| Flathead Beacon
The work I do every day for the most vulnerable happens a long way from Washington D.C., but what happens there has a huge impact on my work for my clients. I’ve been a professional caregiver for almost 30 years, supporting people with quadriplegia and mental health challenges to caring for those with developmental disabilities. […]| Flathead Beacon
Rimmed by snow-capped mountains and ringed by colorful rocks, Glacier National Park’s Lake McDonald catches the eye and imagination of thousands of visitors each year. But the deep, cold lake, the largest in Glacier, has been captivating folks for centuries. Early on, Indigenous people knew the lake as the “sacred dancing water.” In the white […]| Flathead Beacon
World War I was supposed to be the war to end all wars but approximately two decades later WWII occurred. The victors of WWII came together at the end of the war to implement global policy that would stabilize the economies of individual countries and their relationship to one another, with the desire to prevent […]| Flathead Beacon
Kalispell city officials are gathering residents’ thoughts on a new land use plan that will determine how city land is developed over the next 20 years, a change to growth policy mandated by the Montana Land Use Plan Act (MLUPA) that lawmakers passed during the 2023 legislative session. Land use policies dictate how land can […]| Flathead Beacon
After expressing frustration over perceived inaction by the interagency team charged with overseeing federal dam operations, Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte on Thursday submitted a formal request for the release of water from Hungry Horse Reservoir to augment historically low Flathead Lake levels. A below-average snowpack and swift spring melt-out has caused Flathead Lake’s surface level […]| Flathead Beacon
During a press conference in Glacier National Park, Zinke doubled down on request for immediate action to use Hungry Horse Reservoir to refill Flathead Lake, a position at odds with federal operating procedures| Flathead Beacon
Historically low levels of Flathead Lake likely to impact businesses and recreation this summer| Flathead Beacon
Following below-average precipitation in northwest Montana this winter and an above-average melt rate this spring, water supply specialists say the streamflows on all forks of the Flathead River will likely be less than 60% of normal through September, according to the USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) water supply outlook. NRCS water supply specialist Eric […]| Flathead Beacon
With her face blanketed in thick, pink hair, opaque and flowing down and across her shoulders like a shawl, the woman on the wall of Tessa Heck’s studio fixes a perpetual six-eyed stare at the workspace spread out before her. Arranged in descending, slightly overlapping pairs, the eyes — though streaked through with white, and […]| Flathead Beacon
Pat Williams, Montana’s longest-serving member of the U.S. House, died Wednesday evening in a Missoula hospital. The Butte native, who was Montana’s last Democrat elected to the House, served nine terms from 1979 to 1997, including two as the state’s at-large representative. Williams was 87. “He was a hard-nosed politician but he had such a […]| Flathead Beacon
I first tasted a rhubarb sorbet infused with fresh rosemary at the Whitefish Farmers Market more than a decade ago. Sweet Peaks Ice Cream had recently set up shop in town and pulled a trailer down the street for market day. My first thought was, “The flavor is so amazing!” My second thought was, “Rhubarb […]| Flathead Beacon
BILLINGS – President Donald Trump on Thursday ordered government officials to consolidate wildland firefighting into a single program, despite warnings from former federal officials that it could be costly and increase the risk of catastrophic blazes. The order aims to centralize firefighting efforts now split among five agencies and two Cabinet departments. Trump’s proposed budget for next year calls […]| Flathead Beacon
I am an electrical engineer and resident of Columbia Falls, and I am writing to encourage Montanans to consider the impact that cutting the Clean Energy Tax Credits from the federal budget would mean for the future of our country. For the last century, the United States has led the world in the development of critical […]| Flathead Beacon
Attorneys for BNSF Railway, the U.S. government and a Libby asbestos-screening clinic sparred in federal court Thursday over how the railroad giant can collect a multimillion-dollar judgment stemming from hundreds of fraudulent diagnoses made by the nonprofit health care clinic, a case litigated extensively in a 2023 jury trial. The prior legal battle left the […]| Flathead Beacon
The budget reconciliation bill is a sweeping piece of legislation, part of which aims to reduce or increase spending for several federal programs. Federal programs affected, should the bill pass, include Medicaid.| Flathead Beacon
It’s been a busy year for the Piikani artist Terran Last Gun, but he’s excited to be back in Montana showcasing his work at Good Luck Gallery in downtown Kalispell, where a new solo exhibition of ink and colored pencil ledger drawings will run through mid-August. Originally from Browning, but based now out of Santa […]| Flathead Beacon
Glacier National Park officials announced Thursday that the entire 50-mile length of the Going-to-the-Sun Road is slated to open to motorized traffic between West Glacier and St. Mary on Monday, June 16. In advance of the road’s full opening, park officials will open the alpine highway’s eastern half on Saturday, June 14, allowing motorized access […]| Flathead Beacon
BILLINGS – More than 2 million acres of federal lands would be sold or transferred to states or other entities under a budget proposal from Utah Republican Sen. Mike Lee, reviving a longtime ambition of Western conservatives to cede lands to local control after a similar proposal failed in the House. Lee, who chairs the Energy and Natural Resources […]| Flathead Beacon
Stream gage data is already registering temperatures and flows that normally don’t bedevil Montana’s rivers and tributaries until mid-July, prompting state fisheries managers to issue early warning signals on Wednesday that anglers should anticipate restrictions and closures this summer. From the Rocky Mountain Front to the Flathead River Basin, the high-elevation snowpack that nourishes rivers […]| Flathead Beacon
For more than 30 years, a small arts nonprofit in Missoula has connected elementary school kids with professional writers to create and perform poetry. Residency Coordinator Emily Walter says after 28 years of teaching, she still finds open-hearted creativity in every generation. “It’s a 12-week program and at the end, kids choose two of their […]| Flathead Beacon
This month, I’m celebrating nine years of writing the Twice as Tasty food blog and more than 3-1/2 years of this column. My family also recently celebrated several birthdays, and one of my contributions was blackberry sorbet. I make sorbets at home because they don’t require any special equipment. You can make sorbet in an […]| Flathead Beacon
If you think you don’t need a recipe to make hot cereal, you may be right. If you also don’t keep a large container of premixed cereal grains in your kitchen, this week’s recipe maybe just the inspiration you need to quickly create a versatile pantry staple. Multigrain hot cereal mix has become a prepackaged […]| Flathead Beacon
Home-spiced nuts have become one of my holiday favorites. Jars or packets make delicious gifts, and you can throw them together quickly for a party. My go-to combination has some sugar but enough spicy, nutty crunch to seem like a break from cookies and candies. This week’s recipe is really about the technique. All the […]| Flathead Beacon
Through a public and private partnership between the City of Kalispell and local developers, a proposal to build a $9.2 million, eight-story public parking garage that would include 78 multifamily housing units and 6,200 square feet of commercial space continues to see changes as it makes its way through city council. If approved, the parking […]| Flathead Beacon
The Pioneer League’s Glacier Range Riders will pay homage to original park rangers| Flathead Beacon
The Flathead Warming Center and the City of Kalispell have reached an agreement to reinstate the 50-bed, low barrier homeless shelter’s conditional use permit and allow for its permanent operation following months of court proceedings after the city council voted to revoke the permit last year. Kalispell city councilors, however, must pass a resolution to […]| Flathead Beacon
The Flathead Warming Center will open its doors tonight after U.S. District Court Judge Dana Christenen issued a preliminary injunction to allow the 50-bed, low-barrier homeless shelter to operate overnight amid a lawsuit challenging the City of Kalispell’s permit revocation, according to a press release. Beds will remain open for guests throughout the winter and […]| Flathead Beacon
Following a months-long saga of public meetings, the Kalispell City Council on Monday night took the unprecedented step of revoking the Flathead Warming Center’s conditional use permit in a 6-3 vote, citing widespread complaints from neighbors. Councilors Kari Gabriel, Chad Graham, Sid Daoud, Jed Fisher, Sam Nunnally and Mayor Mark Johnson voted in favor of […]| Flathead Beacon
Prior to May 10, 1910, the 1 million acres that are now part of Glacier National Park were part of the Flathead Forest Reserve. Although the glacier-capped mountains and deep blue lakes were just as beautiful before President William Howard Taft signed the legislation creating Glacier as they were afterward, the designation of this area […]| Flathead Beacon
Last October, 28-year-old Devynn Fetter came home to her single-wide trailer in Columbia Falls to find a pamphlet on her door that said the owners of the manufactured-home park were selling and they were hoping to close by Christmas. After an initial panic, Fetter quickly learned that the pamphlet was from NeighborWorks Montana, a local […]| Flathead Beacon
Public schools across the Flathead Valley are facing unprecedented budget crises as the lapse of pandemic-era federal aid, inflation and an unwillingness by local taxpayers to pass school levies converge, leaving districts unable to pay for critical staff and programs. From Kalispell to Somers, school administrators are struggling to piece together budgets for the 2024-25 […]| Flathead Beacon
Whitefish voters on Tuesday rejected a $33.7 million bond that would have funded a major expansion of Whitefish High School and its adjacent athletic complex, marking the unsuccessful culmination of a more than year-long campaign by parents, educators and the Whitefish School Board to expand the campus ahead of projected growth in the school district. […]| Flathead Beacon
The murder trial of a 39-year-old Bigfork man accused of killing his mother along with her partner at their residence in 2022 is now underway in Flathead County District Court, with jury selection, opening statements and witness testimony taking place on Monday, March 31. The 14-member jury panel, which includes two alternates, heard opening statements […]| Flathead Beacon
Citing environmental concerns, the proposed plan was met with strong objections by interagency management team for offering minimal relief to lake levels with large ecological costs| Flathead Beacon
Below-average precipitation in northwest Montana has already depleted stream inflows and dam operators predict Flathead Lake's water levels will keep dropping| Flathead Beacon
The issue of Flathead Lake’s water levels has entered the state legislature with a resolution to treat recreation on par with the rest of the water’s various uses. Senate Joint Resolution 18 requests that decision-making bodies who oversee the lake’s water levels “ensure that recreation needs be measured fairly compared to hydropower, fish, and irrigation […]| Flathead Beacon
For homemade snacks that really showcase their seasonings, reach for a bag or can of beans. Cooked chickpeas, when roasted until crunchy, have a neutral, almost chalky taste if unadorned. But toss them with spices and they become irresistible munchies. I’ve tested various ways to roast chickpeas, lentils and other beans for snacks, from a […]| Flathead Beacon
My workshop for Free the Seeds last weekend focused on seeds as spices. I strongly encourage you to buy spices whole and grind them in small batches at home. Whole spices last longer, and freshly ground ones have superb flavor. You also save money, primarily because you’re not throwing out half-used jars that have gone […]| Flathead Beacon
When the 2023 Legislature set aside $50 million to address workforce housing across the state, lawmakers directed local housing nonprofits to establish management organizations for the new homebuyer assistant program and direct its funds, with $4.5 million designated for Flathead County. If approved by the Flathead County Commissioners, the funding would be managed by a […]| Flathead Beacon
In 2015, nearly a century after the Montana Power Company (MPC) began operating what was then called Kerr Dam on ancestral land to the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes (CKST), the tribes acquired the hydroelectric project as independent operators, having acted as co-licensee with MPC since 1985. Tribal leaders changed the name to the Se̓liš […]| Flathead Beacon
MAGA outsiders and Republicans control both chambers of Congress. They control the White House and the Supreme Court. So, if they wanted to get rid of the Agency for International Development (USAID), for example, they could introduce a bill, debate it, pass it, and send it to President Trump to sign. And there would be […]| Flathead Beacon
The Kalispell Public Schools (KPS) and its teachers union have ratified a two-year collective bargaining agreement, closing a tense chapter for the school district after it failed to reach a contract agreement with its union last spring. In a press release on Wednesday, KPS Superintendent Matt Jensen said the agreement “represents our school community coming […]| Flathead Beacon
“Unimportant.” “Discounted.” “Undervalued.” Nearly two dozen teachers offered public comment before the Kalispell school board on Tuesday night, donning their distinct union red as they expressed dismay that, nearly a month into the school year, the Kalispell Public Schools (KPS) has yet to ratify a collective bargaining agreement with its teachers union. Following months of […]| Flathead Beacon
Amid ongoing conflicts between school districts, elected officials and taxpayers over who is responsible for funding public schools in Montana, experts are pushing for a reconfigured appropriations formula that they say will relieve the burden on taxpayers while better serving schools. Each school district in Montana currently sets the rate at which it taxes local […]| Flathead Beacon
School districts across northwest Montana held elections on Tuesday in which voters decided on school board trustees, bonds and levies. Below are the unofficial results for local school district elections. Results will not become official until they are canvassed by the school board at an upcoming meeting. This story will be updated as results come […]| Flathead Beacon
Kalispell voters on Tuesday overwhelmingly rejected four proposed levies that would have funded safety and technology infrastructure in the Kalispell Public Schools. The failed levies marked a defeat for the district in its efforts to bolster programs that fall outside of traditional funding mechanisms and signaled a reluctance by voters across the Flathead Valley to […]| Flathead Beacon
For George Ostrom, the word “bored” didn’t exist. Between smoke jumping into the Bob Marshall Wilderness, greeting the Flathead Valley every morning as a KOFI radio announcer, starring as Richard Widmark’s stuntman in adventure film “Red Skies of Montana,” erecting the largest weekly newspaper in Montana, chasing down grizzly bear stories, helping compose the Wilderness […]| Flathead Beacon
The Glacier Range Riders have started to build out their roster for the 2025 season, beginning last week with resigning three players from last year’s team, and the organization expects to announce more signings in the coming weeks. The first trio of signees, announced in a press release Tuesday, is made up of infielder Gabe […]| Flathead Beacon
Last month the Montana Supreme Court issued two impressive decisions that illustrate the brilliance of our Constitution and the importance of an independent judiciary. Praise is justly deserved for those who are responsible for those decisions, and there are many. But first a word about the cases themselves. The Court decided Cross v Montana on […]| Flathead Beacon
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Redistricting Commission Chair Maylinn Smith broke with Democrats to pass Montana’s legislative map on Saturday, marking the end of over three years of work from the commission. Montana Districting and Apportionment Commission voted 3-2, with Republicans opposed, on a map to divide the state into 100 house districts, with 50 senate district pairings after accepting […]| Flathead Beacon
Following a decennial redistricting process that reshaped Montana’s legislative districts, Democrats picked up an additional state legislative seat in Flathead County, which remains deeply Republican. Republicans won two of three state Senate races and ten of 11 state House races in Flathead County, according to preliminary results from Flathead County. Sen. Carl Glimm, R-Kila, was […]| Flathead Beacon
BILLINGS – Republican Tim Sheehy bolstered the GOP’s Senate majority with a victory over three-term Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Tester in a contest of national importance that featured a record-setting torrent of spending by the two sides. Sheehy, a former U.S. Navy SEAL, closely aligned his campaign with Donald Trump and leading conservatives while painting […]| Flathead Beacon
WASHINGTON – Donald Trump was elected the 47th president of the United States on Wednesday, an extraordinary comeback for a former president who refused to accept defeat four years ago, sparked a violent insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, was convicted of felony charges and survived two assassination attempts. With a win in Wisconsin, Trump cleared the 270 […]| Flathead Beacon
Hunting season is here and this year I made it out for opening day. This is a rarity for me. An annual conference I attend in late October almost always overlaps the first day of pheasant season, but a calendar quirk meant I was home this year when my favorite season began. I took advantage. […]| Flathead Beacon
A 56-year-old Columbia Falls man was arrested early Wednesday morning following a standoff in which he allegedly shot at two separate people, law enforcement officers and a Two Bear Air helicopter. No one was injured in the incident and the suspect, Travis Myers, is in custody. Flathead County dispatch received a call at about 2 […]| Flathead Beacon
After a nearly 21-year career with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, the agency’s lead fisheries expert has resigned. Eileen Ryce, a fisheries biologist with a PhD, said inadequate support from her superiors while she ran a division that touches on two areas of critical interest in Montana — water and wildlife management — led her to […]| Flathead Beacon
