Page 12 - Flathead Beacon // 8.17.16

NEWS
White sh Stage Road Blu Project Moves Forward
County hopes to have design and build team selected by end of the month, with construction scheduled to start this fall
BY MOLLY PRIDDY OF THE BEACON
A controversial blu -restoration proj- ect planned in a neighborhood along White sh Stage Road is nearing the starting point, as the Flathead County Commission expects to select a contrac- tor near the end of the month.
The White sh Stage Slope Stabilization project, started by local residents, seeks to mitigate the sloughing of a hillside above the residential Village Greens subdivision and just below another set of houses.
Extensive rain started serious slough- ing about six years ago, leading several homeowners to lose chunks of their back- yards. The landslides also washed into the Village Greens stormwater retention pond, hindering its function.
The slope-mitigation project, which homeowners started in 2011 with the help of county emergency services per- sonnel and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), took on
a controversial tone in 2014, when the Flathead County Commission voted to terminate a $400,000 FEMA hazard mitigation grant for the project.
Residents were upset about the vote, after the county had agreed to work with them and helped them achieve the grant. But the commission cited concerns about being held liable if something went wrong in the project.
Susan Storfa and Scott Gearheart, two of the homeowners who live on top of the a ected blu , sued the commission for its reversal and won a March 2015 decision from a Flathead County District Court judge, who said the county had to move forward with the grant.
On Aug. 9, the commission opened the proposals that it requested from contractors seeking the project's almost $1 million contract. Only two compa- nies sought the project: Schellinger Construction, which reported it could complete the project's engineering and
construction for no more than $945,000, and Nelcon and KLJ Engineering, which said its costs wouldn't exceed $949,000. The commission voted to take both pro- posals under consideration.
Flathead County grantwriter Whit- ney Aschenwald said in an interview that the next step in the process is for a review committee to score the two proposals received, and to then form a recommen- dation to bring back to the commission.
Aschenwald said the commission could award the project to the design build team by the end of August, or early September.
"Ideally, we would like (construction) to start this fall," Aschenwald said.
In the timeline outlined in the coun- ty's request for proposals, the county plans to award the contract by Aug. 30, and is aiming for project completion by the end of the year.
To help provide additional funding for the project, the a ected homeowners
worked out a deal with the Flathead County Economic Development Author- ity (FCEDA) to use 17,600 cubic yards of ll removed from FCEDA's upcoming Rail Park project site.
When including the donated ll mate- rials, worth $176,000, the project’s cost rises to $1,128,000. Aschenwald said the construction and engineering limit on the project cannot exceed $952,000.
The timeline around the soil is still a bit up in the air, she said, because the Rail Park project is undergoing its envi- ronmental review. No soil can be dug up and moved before that review is com- plete, she said.
The project will focus on two main slide areas and include stabilizing the hillside to prevent further slides and to protect the homes up above as well as the pond and land below. Crews will also remove sediment and debris from the pond, returning it to its pre-slide state.
mpriddy@ atheadbeacon.com
FWP Con rms Bear that Killed West Glacier Cyclist was a Grizzly DNA results show the bear involved in the fatal mauling on June 29 was a male grizzly
BY DILLON TABISH OF THE BEACON
State wildlife o cials have con rmed
the bear that killed a West Glacier man was a grizzly.
Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks announced Aug. 11 that DNA results show the bear involved in the fatal mauling on June 29 was a male grizzly bear, approx- imately 20 years old.
Brad Treat, a law enforcement o cer with the U.S. Forest Service, was killed after he collided with the bear while rid- ing his mountain bike on the Green Gate/ Half Moon trail system o U.S. Highway 2 south of West Glacier. Treat, 38, was found dead by o cers at the scene of the
attack.
The death is the rst fatal grizzly
attack in Northwest Montana since 2001, when an elk hunter was killed on the Blackfoot Clearwater Game Range near Ovando.
Based on an investigation by the Wildlife Human Attack Response Team, Treat collided with the bear in a surprise encounter on a section of trail that con- tains limited sight distances, which led to a very short reaction time before the collision, according to FWP. The bear reacted, which prompted the attack, FWP said.
The DNA results showed that the bear involved in the attack was a known male
grizzly bear that was previously captured and released during a research study. The bear was captured and released in 2006 in Glacier National Park as part of an ongoing research project and at that time was aged at approximately 8 to 10 years. Due to the parameters of the research project, the bear was not tted with a radio collar at that time. The bear was again identi ed through DNA from hair samples collected from rub trees in the region in 2009 and 2011.
“As far as we know, it’s never had any con icts with humans as far as getting into garbage, killing chickens, or any- thing that would cause us to take a man- agement action. We are not aware of any
con icts the bear has had with humans,” FWP Spokesman John Fraley said.
The investigation was unable to deter- mine how fast Treat was riding when the collision occurred, according to Fraley.
Wildlife o cials conducted a search for the bear following the attack but ended the e ort after a few days. At this time, FWP has concluded its investiga- tion into the incident, Fraley said.
Treat, a Flathead Valley native, and another man were mountain biking on U.S. Forest Service land when the colli- sion occurred. The second rider was able to escape uninjured and summon help.
dtabish@ atheadbeacon.com
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AUGUST 17, 2016 // FLATHEADBEACON.COM