Montana’s stay at home order forced the cancellation of the Billings Art Walk but some of the art can be seen online. Stapleton Gallery in downtown Billings put a virtual art walk on its website. According to Gallery Owner Jeremiah Young the virtual tour drew more than the few hundred that would visit on a normal art walk night. Young said he ...
Fatal Crash North of Columbus
One man is dead and two others injured after a rollover crash north of Columbus, MT Sunday afternoon. The accident occured on a gravel section of Big Timber Road just west of Rapelje. The vehicle lost control and rolled several times before coming to a stop. Speed and alcohol are suspected factors in the crash.
Senator Tester Urges Perdue to Provide Flexibility to Farm Service Loans
Senator Jon Tester today sent a letter to Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue. He is urging the Trump Administration to grant farmers more flexibility in their Farm Service Agency loans in order to ensure the continuity of the country’s food supply and support rural areas during the coronavirus pandemic by providing critical relief to produc...
Whitefish – City Council Prohibits Lodging Reservations
Whitefish City Council passed an emergency ordinance prohibiting motels, hotels, short-term rentals, and other lodging facilities from accepting reservations or walk-ins for non-essential purposes during the COVID-19 emergency for stays through April 30th. Violation of the ordinance may result in revocation of the business license issued by th...
Senator Daines Urges Pompeo to Investigate China’s Response
Senator Steve Daines has sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo urging him to work with our allies around the world and fully investigate China’s response to the emergence of the virus causing COVID-19. Daines says we must discover the origins of the disease in order to better prepare ourselves against another pandemic in the fu...
Colstrip – NorthWestern Energy and Puget Sound Energy Reach Agreement on Unit 3
Shutting down Colstrip Unit 3 becomes much easier under an agreement between power plant owners Puget Sound Energy and Northwestern Energy according to regulatory filings in Washington. They reveal Puget expects to dictate the Montana utility’s vote when it comes to closing Unit 3 sometime in the next five years. Puget plans to sell its 25% ...
Whitefish – City Council to Discuss Permit for New Town Pump
This evening the Whitefish City Council will discuss awarding a conditional use permit for a new Town Pump gas station at a major intersection on the south end of Whitefish. The meeting will be held remotely though WebEx due to the closure of City Hall during the COVID-19 outbreak.
Great Falls – Interim Public Works Director Named
Mike Judge has been named interim Public Works Director of Great Falls while the city completes its search for a permanent replacement and he assumed his roll April 1st. The position became vacant after the former director Jim Rearden retired after 33 years of service. His last day was March 31st.
Flooding Concerns Along Missouri River
Flooding last year along much of the Missouri River’s 2,300 miles battered the river’s levee system, flooding towns and farmland and causing multiple closures to the nation’s interstate highway system. The forecast this year isn’t much better. The Missouri begins in southwestern Montana where the Gallatin, Madison, and Jefferson rivers converg...
Billings – Planning Department Moves to Online Services Sooner Than Planned
With building season ramping up the Billings planning department is finding alternative ways to issue permits. The department had been in the process of moving to a more online based system for its services before COVID-19 hit. Now it’s forced to move those plans along a little faster.