Good morning; on the Beacon today, the Flathead County Economic Development Authority’s goal of establishing a rail-served industrial park somewhere in the valley received a big boost after Sens. Max Baucus and Jon Tester announced a $1.147-million grant toward the project. As the weather begins to cool for fall’s arrival, Flathead Valley residents may notice a heightened amount of bear activity in the lower basins as the animals continue packing away calories before hibernation. Swaths of forests killed by mountain pine beetles may not be as prone to massive fires as many previously assumed, a conclusion drawn by researchers from the University of Wisconsin and Yellowstone National Park. And Kitchen Guy Jim Gray is skeptical of a proposed name change for high fructose corn syrup.
The Citizen United Supreme Court decision has contributed to an explosion in political advertising by outside groups, so far most of them allied with the Republican Party, that have flocked to raise big money from individuals and companies and flooded into some of the most competitive races across the country. Zach Minter scored on a 53-yard interception return and place-kick holder Rick Haluszka ran in on a fake field goal to help Montana State to a 30-7 win over Eastern Washington on Saturday. Justin Roper hit Bryce Carver with a 29-yard touchdown pass with 9:34 to play to propel Montana to a 28-25 win over Sacramento State. Two of the nation’s largest oil companies want to drive mammoth truckloads of refinery equipment along the narrow ribbon of spectacular mountain road that borders national forests, wild and scenic rivers, historic sites and campgrounds along Idaho’s Highway 12. Lookout Pass Ski Area on the Idaho-Montana border is planning a $20 million expansion that would more than quadruple its terrain, add eight chairlifts and a second base area, and encompass two additional peaks. If President Barack Obama gets his way on letting Bush-era tax cuts expire for the wealthiest Americans, only 1.3 percent of taxpaying households in Montana would see an increase in their federal income taxes. Depending on whose argument you accept, Initiative 161 will either help hunters access more private land or gut Montana’s hunting outfitter industry. Chuck Johnson profiles Denny Rehberg as he seeks a sixth term. Residents of southwestern Montana’s Anaconda are just now remembering one of the bitterest days for this former smelting town: Sept. 29, 1980, also known as “Black Monday.”