Page 14 - Flathead Beacon // 10.7.15

NEWS
CITY BEAT
COLUMBIA FALLS
CFAC Panel to Host Open House
The public is invited to an open house hosted by the Columbia Falls Aluminum Company Community Liaison Panel at Columbia Falls High School on Oct. 8 from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Interested community members and officials are invited to meet those involved in the clean-up project and to discuss current efforts at the former aluminum plant, as well as ask questions and offer comments.
The open house will take place in the high school cafeteria and will include booth displays about the proposed Reme- dial Investigation/Feasibility Study, for- mer operations, demolition activities and regulatory oversight. The event will not include a formal presentation but will allow guests the opportunity to meet and talk directly with project representatives.
Members of the CFAC Community Liai- son Panel represent various interests and serve as a cross-section of the Columbia Falls and Flathead County community. The group meets on a regular basis at a pre-announced location in Columbia Falls.
The Environmental Protection Agency has proposed placing the CFAC site on the federal Superfund program’s National Pri- orities List.
The city of Columbia Falls, Gov. Steve Bullock, U.S. Sen. Jon Tester and a host of local organizations support the move, CFAC and the company’s owner, Glencore, oppose listing. CFAC hired Roux Associates to develop its own work plan for the site.
FLATHEAD
New Buyer Knocks County Out of Walmart Purchase
Flathead County’s attempt at pur- chasing the former Walmart building in Evergreen has been sidelined now that the seller has received another offer for the property.
According to county administrator Mike Pence, the county’s $2.8 million offer for the 130,000-square-foot build- ing and the 14 acres around it was turned down after a new buyer came on the scene.
The county was in a tentative agree- ment with the seller to purchase the property and was in a 120-day period wherein the county would perform its due diligence on the building, which was going to serve as a new detention center and sheriff’s office.
“We’re disappointed, because we felt this had a lot of merit to consider for pub- lic safety and detention needs,” Pence said of the sale falling through.
There were plans to spend about $20,000 on an architectural review of the building, as well as about $17,000 on
The site operated as a primary alumi- num reduction facility between 1955 and 2009. Contaminants detected at the site include cyanide, fluoride, and metals, such as arsenic, chromium, lead, and selenium. These contaminants are present in soils, surface ponds and groundwater and, if not addressed, could pose a risk to nearby wells and the Flathead River.
COLUMBIA FALLS
Planning Board to Hold Public Hearing on Hotel
The Columbia Falls City County Plan- ning Board will host a public hearing on Oct. 13 at 6:30 p.m. for a planned unit development for a hotel adjacent to Pine- wood Park at the former Norem property.
The City Council will hold a subse- quent hearing Oct. 19 at 7 p.m.
Ruis Holdings plans to build an 82-room, three-story hotel on the prop- erty, with 64 rooms in the first phase.
Mick Ruis, who recently purchased several properties in the city, is the pri- mary developer.
The land is zoned as Commercial Busi- ness 2, which allows for hotels, although there are limits involving height and parking. The building would need a vari- ance for height – city codes call for a max- imum height of 45 feet while the appli- cant seeks 47 feet.
Ruis also is seeking parking variances, noting a 3,000-square-foot conference room inside the hotel primarily will be used for day activities while the hotel will be used at night.
an environmental study, but those have been shelved. An appraisal, which would have cost in the $5,000 to $6,000 range, was also not performed.
Pence said the county did perform some work on the property already, including weed control and trimming trees and shrubbery.
“We weren’t trying to do anybody favors,” Pence said. “We cleaned it up a little bit.”
Flathead County identified the need for more jail space in conversations dating back a decade, but the Flathead County Commission in 2014 decided to maximize its levies for a few years to save for new jail space, which was expected to cost about $14 million.
The county had also transferred $3 million from the general fund cash bal- ance to pay for the Walmart purchase.
In the initial discussions about new jail space, Pence said the county was focused on constructing an addition to the existing jail. Through the process of considering transforming the former Walmart building’s shell into a detention center, Pence said the county realized the potential benefits of a new building off
KALISPELL
United Way Kicks Off Fundraising Campaign
United Way has begun its annual fund drive to support a variety of nonprofit agencies across Northwest Montana.
The monetary goal is $850,000. Last year’s campaign goal was $700,000, and the total raised exceeded that goal by $34,589, or 14 percent. United Way Member Agencies helped 50,873 people in need.
The campaign continues through Dec. 31, 2015.
Sherry Stevens, Executive Director of the local United Way, said community needs are greater than ever and encour- aged community members to give gener- ously to help their neighbors.
Local businesses that are interested in hosting a United Way drive in their workplaces are asked to call the United Way at 752-7266 for more information or to request a presentation or campaign resources. United Way member agencies have displays at the Kalispell Center Mall the week of Nov. 3-7 to help the campaign.
On Saturday, Nov. 7, there will be entertainment, face painting and bal- loons will for children of all ages through- out the day.
Donations to the annual fund drive benefit United Way Member Agencies and services in Flathead County, serving thousands of local individuals and fam- ilies with a variety of needs. The United Way also provides community resources including the annual Answer Book, a
campus.
Instead of adding more space that
would likely fill up in the next few decades, Pence said the idea of a new building with more space seems more attractive.
“So, because of all these things kind of falling in line, I’m pretty sure that we’re going to be looking at other alternative sites off campus,” he said.
Any plan to build a jail off site or buy a building off site would likely go through a preliminary architectural review, he said, which would include all the county’s alternatives, such as various sites, adding on to the current building, and existing buildings.
Regardless of the setback, Pence said the county is speeding up its timeline to expand the jail because the overcrowding is becoming such a problem.
The jail was built in 1985 and designed to hold 63 inmates. The inmate popula- tion now is more than 100 people on most nights, according to Flathead County Sheriff Chuck Curry, and some offenders are released just to make room for more dangerous offenders.
counseling directory, the Montana 211 project, a Volunteer Center and the Fam- ilyWize prescription program.
KALISPELL
Grocery Delivery Services Seeks Volunteers, Recipients
Elderly and disabled people who can- not get to the grocery store on their own can benefit from a volunteer program that provides grocery deliveries to homes in our local community.
The Kalispell Home Bound Grocery Delivery Service delivers groceries once a week to people within the Kalispell city limits. The service is available to low-in- come private individuals who are unable to drive and shop for themselves, primar- ily the elderly and people who are either temporarily or permanently disabled.
Volunteers to help with the program are always welcome. Registered United Way volunteers will deliver groceries free of charge to eligible individuals.
Groceries must be paid for by check or debit card number at the time of deliv- ery. Orders can be called in on Thursdays between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. Orders will be filled on Friday mornings at Rosauer’s grocery store and will be delivered on Friday afternoons.
For more information on the program or to volunteer, call 752-7266.
[email protected]
LAKE
Public Service Commission Asks Feds to Probe Dam Transfer
The Montana Public Service Commis- sion has asked the Federal Energy Reg- ulatory Commission to hold hearings to determine if the ownership transfer of a Flathead River dam to the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes last month was properly vetted.
The tribes paid nearly $18.3 million to NorthWestern Energy to acquire the dam, which was transferred Sept. 5 and renamed Salish Kootenai Dam.
The Missoulian reports that the PSC announced Sept. 29 that it had submitted a renewed request to the FERC for public hearings to determine if the public inter- est standard was met when it licensed the tribes to manage the dam.
The commission says the transfer was hasty and politically motivated.
Tribes spokesman Rob McDonald says they have received the filing and are in the process of reviewing it.
[email protected]
NEWS
COUNTY BEAT
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OCTOBER 7, 2015 // FLATHEADBEACON.COM