The Kalispell Police and Flathead County Sheriff’s reports for Tuesday included the following: 8:52 a.m. ShopKo wanted deputies to assist in the removal of the transients who have been camping out behind the store. 10:24 a.m. Pink paintballs were fired at the back of a storage unit on Cottonwood Drive. 1:53 p.m. A man called […]

Flathead County Commissioners voted 2-1 Wednesday morning to deny the North Shore Ranch subdivision. Commissioners Joe Brenneman and Gary Hall voted against preliminary plat approval for the project, citing concerns with flooding, ground stability during seismic events and effects on wildlife. Commissioner Dale Lauman voted to approve the development. Overall, Hall and Brenneman said, North […]

HELENA – The Montana Board of Pharmacy took no action Wednesday after hearing comment on the issue of pharmacists who refuse to dispense contraceptives because of religious beliefs. Montana currently has no rule or statute that requires pharmacies to stock every drug on the market, and “we decided to leave it at that,” board President […]

An update to the 2006 Kalispell Area Transportation Plan passed unanimously Monday night, outlining most of the major road construction to take place in Kalispell through 2030. The federal and state funding will pick up most of the tab, and are expected to pay over $100 million in infrastructure improvements. The city will pay roughly […]

Good morning and happy Earth Day. It’s a sunny and chilly morning in the Flathead. The Kalispell City Council last night unanimously passed its Area Transportation Plan update, outlining road improvements for decades to come. The U.S. Forest Service is cracking down on all the unleashed dogs playing in the snow at Whitefish Mountain Resort […]

MISSOULA – Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul spoke against the Iraq war, the Patriot Act and big government in a speech to 1,000 people at the University of Montana. The 72-year-old Paul touched on many of his libertarian themes Monday night as he spoke in the University Center Ballroom. His message of individual freedom and […]

TROY – Federal regulators have levied more than $400,000 in new fines against managers of Troy Mine for not adequately protecting underground workers from falling rocks even after an employee was killed in a cave-in. The $417,400 in new fines, tallied in four counts of failing to adequately support the underground roof, come after more […]

HELENA – Gov. Brian Schweitzer will make his silver screen debut Friday when the independent film “A Plumm Summer” is released in several Montana cities. The film, directed by Caroline Zelder and written by Billings native TJ Lynch, is about the innocence of an idyllic Montana town that is disrupted when celebrity puppet ‘Froggy Doo’ […]

POLSON – Four more homes along Flathead Lake were evacuated over the weekend. That brings to five the number deemed unsafe to occupy, after an April 2nd fuel tanker accident that dumped almost 6,400 gallons of gasoline in a ditch along state Highway 35. Residents say they have been told it could be years, even […]

So today is Earth Day – a chance for many of us to start believing in the good of the world again following tax season. But instead of delving into fuel efficiency and conservation, I would like to take a moment to commemorate indulgence, fiery car crashes and the blues. On this day in 1978 […]

An animal attack that left a dog near dead could be a sign that a wolf pack has expanded its territory to include the Truman Creek Road area north of Blacktail Mountain, residents and a wildlife biologist said. Last Saturday afternoon, Jim and Audrey Ponaski returned home to find their yellow lab, Goldie, lying injured […]

The Kalispell Police and Flathead County Sheriff’s reports for Monday included the following: 7:36 a.m. Four unlocked vehicles were burglarized on Caroline Road. A rifle, binoculars and change were among the items taken. 8:02 a.m. A terrible driver ran over the Flathead Glassworks sign. 8:09 a.m. A speedometer, CDs and a wallet were taken out […]

WASHINGTON – President Bush on Tuesday criticized a farm bill making its way through Congress, saying it would increase spending by at least $16 billion at a time of record farm income. Bush issued a statement intended to put pressure on House and Senate negotiators to develop legislation that would be acceptable to the White […]

Good morning and happy kindergarten day. Today us the birthday of Friedrich Froebel, the man who started the first kindergarten in Germany in 1837. On the Beacon this morning, the young artists show at the Hockaday Museum of Art features painting and sculptures by some of the most talented kids in the valley. Realtors in […]

DES MOINES, Iowa – At a time of record agricultural profits, concerns are mounting that American farmers could be edging toward a financial crisis not seen since the 1980s farm-economy collapse. Soaring land values, increasing debt and a reliance on government subsidies for ethanol production have prompted economists to warn that what some describe as […]