Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 32
BIG SKY, MONT. - "This is a story about a community coming together to save their town through tourism," wrote Montana Department of Commerce Industry Services & Outreach Bureau Chief Jan Stoddard regarding Ovando being recognized as Montana Office of Tourism and Business Development's 2018 Community of the Year. "It was clear that Ovando's unique community collaboration, no matter the town's size, can have a lasting impact on supporting the travelers who visit Montana and spend $3.4 billion in...
SEELEY LAKE – Sunday, May 6 is the last day the Seeley Lake Refuse District will accept plastic recycling. This is a result of Pacific Recycling in Missoula no longer accepting plastics due to continuing problems with improper sorting, low market value, increasing freight costs and overall loss of revenue from plastic recycling. China has been a major buyer of lower recovery and mixed grade recyclable materials for many years. Over the past several years they have been phasing in import restrictions on many of these items. The most recently imp...
SEELEY LAKE – The northwest areas of the Seeley Lake Airport will see much needed improvements this summer thanks to nearly $35,000 earned from use during the Rice Ridge Fire. Three new concrete helipads will be constructed as well as clearing the area, improving the vehicle path and access from Cottonwood Lakes Road. The Seeley Lake Airport is state owned. It is not part of the National Airspace System or the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems. "There are no federal dollars [to s...
SEELEY LAKE – Seeley Lake Volunteer Fire Department responded to a structure fire on Shoreline Court the evening of April 19. Firefighter contained the fire to one area of the home but there was smoke damage throughout. No one was injured during the incident. While the cause of the fire is still under investigation, no foul play is suspected. According to Seeley Lake's new Fire Chief Dave Lane, a member of the public called in the fire on Thursday around 8:30 p.m. They reported there was s...
SEELEY LAKE - Job well done Seeley Lake Fire Department Interim Chief Michael Greer and a big thank you. It takes a special person to step up to the plate and do what you did with the fire department. Job well done, well done. And I want to urge Seeley to vote with me for Connie Clark and Gary Lewis for the Seeley Lake Fire Board of Trustees....
I read Mr. Doug Anderson’s letter concerning the proposed Swan Mountain subdivision and the fact that its location preempts its inclusion in Missoula County’s permit system. If I understand him correctly, this fact will cause great harm to first responders in the future, due to shoddy construction. Mr. Anderson states that after 2006, when the building permit system was implemented countywide, thanks to this much needed program, buildings are safer and the result is less demand on first responders. That may or may not be true. We have a ten...
SEELEY LAKE - Seeley Lake is very fortunate to have three new people who are interested in running for the Sewer Board. They are Beth Hutchinson, Troy Spence and Juli Cole. The top priority for these three candidates is not to immediately reject the sewer. Their key focus will be on reevaluating all wastewater treatment options and greatly improving communications with the district. There are several issues that they will address if elected to the board. One of their main concerns is that many of the constituents in Phase I will be forced into...
Dear Citizens of House District 92, You can count on Duane “Cecil” Schlabach to be a representative who will pour his heart and soul into his duties. He has integrity, humor, a solid work ethic, a caring heart for Montana and its people and a wealth of knowledge and experience. I hope you take time to vote for him in the upcoming primary election June 5th. I’ve had the privilege of working alongside Cecil at Seeley Lake Elementary since 2011, when he became the junior high civics, history and English teacher. He has excellent rapport with...
When we first came to Seeley Lake in the late 1990’s, there was much discussion about the sewer system. We were interested in the future planning for this community and went to the Missoula County Office and obtained a Seeley Lake Comprehensive Plan Amendment. This was adopted by the County Board of Commissioners and the Seeley Lake Community Council on May 10, 1989. This amendment, “was an effort by the people of the Seeley Lake Area to outline the direction in which they wish their community to go and to set specific goals for acc...
SEELEY LAKE - The more the sewer is the topic, the more false information is surfacing. First of all, regarding Joann Wallenburn’s letter in the April 19 issue of the Pathfinder. I would like to ask her to support her facts on the Placid Lake algae bloom. How is that possibly caused by Seeley Lake septic systems? And in reference to Wallenburn’s comment on the Salmon Lake algae bloom, since Placid Lake is upstream from Salmon Lake, wouldn’t it be logical to say maybe Placid has leaking septics or some DNRC lots on the Clearwater have issue...
SEELEY LAKE - There is not enough space in this column to list all the accomplishments and dedication to our community of these five outstanding people, which have already been documented on these pages last week. Suffice it to say that they all have devoted many hours, days and years in their respective offices skillfully and that there is no substitute for solid long-term experience and knowledge. Add that we would be throwing away about $8 million in federal grants if we were to elect the wrong people to the Sewer Board and the decision...
SEELEY LAKE - Finally, after more than two decades of effort by many members of the sewer board and managers, we now have a solid plan and funding in place for a sewer system in Seeley Lake. I can only express my heartfelt thanks to all who have tirelessly pursued the goal of bringing this to pass. The board has done a great job and, in my opinion, there are NO better or more cost-effective systems. These have all been considered and found wanting. Now is NOT the time to change hands on the board, exchanging knowledge, understanding and...
SEELEY LAKE - When long-term, costly decisions are being made, you— the voters— deserve to be given reliable information. Getting such information from the current Seeley Lake Sewer Trustees has been and continues to be virtually impossible. When incumbents spoke at the candidates’ forum, they continued to demonstrate their inability to serve us well. Asked about what might be reasonable sewer rates, they each waffled in different directions. According to earlier, formal board and general manager-released figures for debt (+/- $55) and opera...
Community Invited to Celebrate Seeley Lake Fire Department’s Newest Honorary Member Addy Trevino, April 29 SEELEY LAKE – The Seeley Lake Fire Department formally invites the entire Seeley Lake Community to join them in making Seeley Lake’s Addy Boo Trevino an honorary member of the Seeley Lake Rural Fire District. On Sunday, April 29 at 1 p.m. they will be officially welcoming Addy as our newest member and presenting her with her uniform, badge and turnout gear. “We hope you will come join us for the ceremony followed by snacks, cocoa and cof...
Most data is obtained legally, with your consent. But many times you don’t recognize when you are providing your information. There are many steps you can take to help protect your privacy. Here are a few more that are driven by the upcoming election cycle: • Stop filling out political surveys you get in the mail or over the phone. No matter what they say or imply, those surveys are not directing the actions of any organization. Organizations have boards, funders or founders that determine organizational goals. • Stop taking online quizz...
SEELEY LAKE – The Seeley Lake Elementary (SLE) school board received a request for land to construct an ice rink at their April 17 meeting. They also received updates on a wide range of topics from the school’s new policy for walkout protests and building updates, to teacher contract negotiations. Scott Eggeman presented the idea of developing a community ice rink on SLE property. Eggeman, Jim McLean, Lee Boman, Mike Lindemer, Gary Swain and Scott Newpower have taken on this project and have been working under the non-profit, Seeley Lake ROC...
SWAN VALLEY - Members of the Swan Valley Community Council discussed the next step needed to implement the second draft of the Swan Valley Regional Draft Plan at their meeting April 17. They voted for each SVCC member to prioritize the more than 20 comments they received pertaining to the plan before the next meeting May 15. The comments along with the draft plans can be found by visiting: http://apps.missoulacounty.us/go/svccplan Chair Ken Donovan said that the comments will be discussed at open meetings and then voted upon as to what will be...
SEELEY LAKE – The Seeley Lake Fire Board discussed several personnel items, approved multiple purchases and heard comments from past volunteer Kristy Pohlman at their monthly meeting April 17. Seeley Lake’s new Fire Chief Dave Lane was welcomed by the board and volunteers. He officially started April 16 and will overlap with Interim Chief Michael Greer until early June. Greer said the district has added 10 new volunteer members and six auxiliary members to the roster in the past six months. Volunteer member Kyle Zumwalt said the membership is h...
DEER LODGE & HELMVILLE - The Powell County Weed Board will be holding its annual spring weed management education and outreach get togethers Thursday, May 3, 6 - 8 p.m. at the Deer Lodge Community Center and Friday, May 4, 1 - 3 p.m. at the Helmville Community Center. Topics this year will be “Weed Rap Sheets: A New Tool for Prioritizing Weed Management” presented by Dean Pearson, Research Scientist, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Missoula, and “Using EDDMapS West for Noxious Weed Management” by Jasmine Reimer, Noxious Weed Trust Fund Co...
The Missoula City-County Health Department continues to look for strategies to address the high wood stove smoke levels that occur in some Seeley Lake neighborhoods. This past winter we launched a pilot project to look at an alternative wood-based fuel source (manufactured wood fuel logs) to see if it would be effective at reducing smoke emissions and if it would fit the home heating needs of Seeley Lake residents. Manufactured wood fuel logs are made of compressed sawdust or wood chips with or...
SWAN LAKE - The Flathead National Forest is pleased to announce the arrival of Chris Dowling, the new district ranger for the Swan Lake Ranger District following the retirement of Ranger Rich Kehr. Bill Mulholland was also hired as the new district ranger for the Tally Lake Ranger District following Ranger Lisa Timchak's promotion to Forest Supervisor in Wyoming. Dowling comes to the Flathead National Forest joined by his wife Tanya and four children. Chris brings over 23 years of forestry and n...
SEELEY LAKE - The Seeley Lake Sewer District continued to discuss the location of the sewer forcemain from town to the treatment plant and received new information on an easement on Pine Drive at their April 19 board meeting. A possible source of funding to help out low-income residents has been identified. The board also discussed the upcoming board election and approved their conflict-of-interest policy and next year’s budget. At last month’s meeting, several board members questioned why the sewer forcemain from the lift station near the int...
Since its founding in 1993, Clearwater Montana Properties has emphasized community building as a key component of its company culture. Through its Charitable Giving Program, the company's agents give back a portion of all real estate proceeds to the communities in which they were earned. To date, the program has produced nearly $500,000 in charitable donations to causes throughout Montana, Idaho, Washington and Wyoming including more than $60,000 in 2017 alone. "Being a positive force locally...
SEELEY LAKE - The Seeley Lake Community Council hosted two candidate forums, April 9 and 11, covering eight races with 31 candidates in attendance. All candidates on the May 8 Special District Mail-in ballot and June 5 primary were invited. Ballots for the May 8 election were mailed April 18. For the next three weeks, the Pathfinder will feature two of the races from the Candidate Forum. This week the Pathfinder features the candidates for the Missoula County Sheriff’s and Justice of the P...
SEELEY LAKE - The Seeley Lake Community Council hosted two candidate forums, April 9 and 11, covering eight races with 31 candidates in attendance. All candidates on the May 8 Special District Mail-in ballot and June 5 primary were invited. Ballots for the May 8 election were mailed April 18. For the next three weeks, the Pathfinder will feature two of the races from the Candidate Forum. This week the Pathfinder features the candidates for the Missoula County Sheriff's and Justice of the Peace t...
