Every day there is another story about how tariffs have impacted U.S. communities near the Canadian border. Crossings from Canada to Michigan are down 11% from last year, with an 18% drop in car travel. In New York’s Erie and Niagara counties, 35,619 fewer cars crossed the Peace Bridge connecting Canada to Buffalo, N.Y., in February and March of this year compared to those months in 2024. During that same time period, almost 30,000 fewer cars crossed the Rainbow Bridge in Niagara Falls. But perhaps no border town has seen its economy hurt as much as Port Roberts, Wash., which sits at the bottom of a peninsula where the only way in or out is through Canada.

Ali Hayton, who owns the main grocery store in town, told Bloomberg Businessweek that her sales are down 30% from a year earlier and she is worried about the summer in which 80% of her business comes from visiting Canadians. She said that despite all the talk of the U.S. annexing Canada, some Port Roberts locals want the opposite.

“There’s a lot of people that are saying, ‘Why don’t we just give Point Roberts to Canada?’ I feel like most of the people in Point Roberts really just feel like we are alone in this.”

I’m Kellyn Brown, and I hope your week is off to a good start. Over the last month or so, we’ve interviewed several businesses and stakeholders in our local border communities and most of them are decidedly more optimistic about Canadian tourism despite the simmering trade war tension.

“A lot of our Canadians are pretty committed to coming – some of them still have homes here,” Mike Volsky, owner of Four Corners Casino and Grill in Eureka, told us. “Most of the Canadians I know personally through the restaurant are still coming down.”

Meanwhile, newly elected Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is scheduled to meet U.S. President Donald Trump this week. The meeting could provide some insight on how close, or far apart, the two countries are to settling their trade differences.

Either way, we’ll be keeping an eye on how tariffs continue to affect local economies as peak tourism season approaches.

The Beacon newsroom is following several other stories this week. We’re covering the city of Whitefish’s immigration enforcement discussion after a Venezuelan man was arrested and then released last week. We’re keeping tabs on the various school levy elections. We’ll also be reporting on the latest developments in the proposed Kalispell Main Street Action Plan.  

Finally, here are the most popular stories the Flathead Beacon has published over the last week:

• Anglers Break Mack Days Record, Signaling Rise of Juvenile Lake Trout (read)
• Glacier Park Plows Push Past Big Bend (read)
• Attorney: Venezuelan Man Detained in Whitefish had Legal Authorization to Live in the U.S. (read)
• A Year of Unknowns for Montana Tourism (read)
• Kalispell Artist Sydney Boveng (whose artwork is pictured above) is Bringing it All Together, One Piece at a Time (read)

Now let’s take a look at some of today’s top stories from northwest Montana and beyond …

What You Can Buy for About $950,000: In Romy Caro’s latest real estate roundup, she features a ranch-style home located in the heart of Whitefish; a modern residence nestled in the Eagle Bend golf community; and a Montana retreat on 5 acres in Columbia Falls. See all the listings here.