Elton John announced last week that he is not coming to Kalispell. Well, not really. Our city wasn’t actually mentioned in any announcement involving the knighted singer. But he is coming to Montana and has chosen to sidestep the Flathead Valley. The list of those who have done the same before is a lengthy one: […]

Larry Iverson III. It’s a good golf name. But his game is even better – maybe the best in the state. Iverson, Glacier High’s junior standout, has won the first two Class AA golf tournaments of the 2007 season, including the Helena Invite in which he shot back-to-back 68s for an 8-stroke rout. His team […]

While residents on Texas Avenue find relief from the construction of their water main project, digging should start this next week on two more Whitefish streets. For those living on Armory Road and the east end of Second Street, get ready for rough roads. In a 45-day project, Robert Peccia and Associates engineers will install […]

The Kalispell Police and Flathead County Sheriff’s reports for Thursday included the following: 6:44 a.m. An elk head was stolen out of a garage on Hodgson Road in Columbia Falls. 1:05 p.m. The owner of a loose mule was required to bring the animal home. 1:10 p.m. A 12-year-old boy was spotted driving. It is […]

While it’s unlikely to be as amusing as an episode of Gilligan’s Island, Kalispell city leaders plan to pile into a rented motor coach Sept. 10 to once again take up an annual tradition: a guided tour of the city they are creating. A deserted tropical island is not among the scheduled stops. Once a […]

HELENA (AP) – The Legislature agreed Wednesday to set up a special $40 million account to pay for future wildfire costs, in addition to paying the firefighting bills accrued this summer. The special legislative session Gov. Brian Schweitzer called for the purpose took just one day, as Republicans and Democrats both largely agreed on the […]

The Kalispell Police and Flathead County Sheriff’s reports for Wednesday and Thursday morning included the following: 11:28 a.m. A woman stung by a bee in the temple went into anaphylactic shock yet managed to drive herself to North Valley Hospital. 12:02 p.m. A one-year-old boy required stitches after a dog bit him in the face. […]

Montana’s office of the commissioner of political practices recently posted the campaign finance data for the 2006 statewide legislative races on its Web site. While the information has been available by request in Helena, the release of the data in a consolidated, easy-to-read table represents an effort by the commissioner’s office to increase the transparency […]

A crowd of participants line up for a chance to dunk Rob Veneman, a school resource officer, at the one of the Back to School Bash’s more popular events at the Smith Soccer Fields in Whitefish. Thousands of participants visited the free event hosted by Whitefish CARE and Whitefish School District. Students of all ages […]

At a sparsely attended meeting Tuesday, Kalispell city council came up short of approving an agreement to allow voters in November to decide on a two-cent per gallon tax on motor fuel. Instead, council amended the language of the agreement to express intent to approve the interlocal agreement proposal, but to allow city managers for […]

In a touchy atmosphere at Whitefish City Hall, the city council approved the development of two townhouses near Whitefish Lake Golf Course after the planning board unanimously denied it. The townhouses, which are split up into two units each to provide for four total living units, are located on Ramsey Avenue. Fred Grant, a Ramsey […]

WHITEFISH – Creation isn’t always this loud. But with the humming and pounding of an air compressor and hydraulic hammers, Tony Stewart’s ironworking studio leaves the head a bit rattled. When he’s not grappling with the hefty hydraulics, Stewart handles welders, chisels, heavy chunks of metal and phone calls, without skipping a beat. Some realities […]

As the danger from another wildfire season tentatively begins to draw down, the finger-pointing over fire policy and management has already ramped up. The rumor mill that inevitably takes shape amid natural disasters has given rise to a controversial story regarding mismanagement of the Jocko Lakes fire by the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes of […]

From time to time, I stumble across online businesses that forget that first and foremost, they are a business – not a website. TWO this week. I generally find these things when I need service from a business for the first time. Perhaps the dream of the typical internet business owner is to put up […]

HELENA, (AP) – Legislative analysts agreed Tuesday that more money is needed to fight fires in Montana but called the state’s current system for funding wildfire suppression “convoluted” and raised concerns about some of Gov. Brian Schweitzer’s special session requests. The governor called a special session, scheduled to begin Wednesday, in which lawmakers will consider […]