Sorted by date Results 26 - 50 of 455
SWAN VALLEY- In a special meeting May 26, the Swan Valley School Board voted to non-renew its contract with non-certified staff Christopher Mauldin. Mauldin was hired under a provisional license three years ago. Under state statute the District cannot continue Mauldin’s contract without an extension to the current provisional license, said James Boyd, Board Chair. In 2021, the Montana Office of Public Instruction (OPI) granted fourth year extensions to instructors working toward certification due to COVID issues. To date OPI has not granted a...
SEELEY LAKE – The Seeley Lake Elementary School Board reviewed proposals for ADA compliant playground equipment at the May 16 meeting. The current playground is amazing said Josh Gibbs, superintendent/principal. People make it a rest stop when traveling through the area. “It is starting to deteriorate,” Gibbs said. “Kids are getting tons of slivers from the playground (equipment).” Some of the boards are breaking, which is fixable, Gibbs said. Since it is pressure treated it can’t be sanded down to get a nice, smooth finish. There is the opti...
SWAN VALLEY – The comment period regarding the potential Condon Container Site continues for another 30 days on the Missoula County Voice website (https://missoulacountyvoice.com/). Currently comments and poll information indicate the majority of the community is opposed to the container site due to cost, said Dan Saari, Swan Valley Community Council secretary/treasurer, at the May 17 Swan Valley Community Council meeting. The Condon Container Site proposal came about during meetings regarding the Swan Valley Plan draft which is now in front of...
SEELEY LAKE – After no interest in the firefighter/paramedic position previously posted, Seeley Lake Fire Chief Dave Lane requested at the May 17 meeting that the Fire Board consider approving a firefighter/EMT (FF/EMT) position. He has an interested candidate. The Board held a special meeting May 20 and unanimously approved the position. At the regular board meeting, Lane advised he felt the District was offering a competitive wage for the firefighter/paramedic position. However, housing is a...
SEELEY LAKE – Missoula County Building Official Dave Larkin presented the Seeley Lake Community Council information regarding the need for increased building permit fees and ways the building division is funded. There were several other updates provided the Council regarding the Seeley Lake Ranger District, Bob Marshall Music Festival, Change Your Pace Challenge and the new Seeley Lake resource specialist with Missoula Aging Services. Unlike other county departments which are funded through the county general fund, the building division, which...
SWAN VALLEY - The Swan Valley School Board reviewed two budget proposals for Fiscal Year 2022-23, one shows a 5.5% salary increase for certified and non-certified staff, the other a 4% increase. Discussion around the two proposals offered concerns regarding budget cushion. During the 2021-2022 school year, the District is over budget for garbage disposal, propane and substitute teacher costs. However, according to District Clerk Heather Mincey, the overall budget is okay. “We have only spent 80% of our budget with two months left of s...
SEELEY LAKE – At their April 21 meeting, the Seeley Lake Sewer District Board plans to put out a Request for Proposals (RFP) but delayed when they would be due. They also voted to expend money from the District’s reserves for much of next year’s budget to reduce the burden on taxpayers for a year. District Manager Bill Decker reported that there were two replies to the District’s Request for Qualifications (RFQ) that came in on time with the required number of copies, one that came in on time but was missing the number of copies and another...
SWAN VALLEY - Missoula County Public Works officials presented information regarding a garbage disposal container site for the Swan Valley and the need for increases to building permit fees at the Swan Valley Community Council meeting April 19. Container Site Shane Stack, Public Works Director, led the meeting with the Condon Container Site proposal. The projected cost to create a Container Site with four bins to dump garbage is currently estimated at $612,000, Stack said. The annual operating...
MISSOULA - Missoula City-County Air Pollution Control Board (Air Board) approved the proposed changes to the Missoula City-County Air Pollution Control Program at the April 21 meeting. The proposal has been sent to the Missoula County Commissioners and then on to Montana Department of Environmental Quality and the Environmental Protection Agency for review and approval. The proposal creates a Seeley Lake Wood Stove Zone where only the cleanest and most efficient stoves can be installed. The purpose of the wood stove rule in Seeley is designed...
SEELEY LAKE – At the April 11 meeting, Seeley Lake Elementary School Superintendent Josh Gibbs advised the board the current community use of school facilities policy follows the law based on US Supreme Court rulings. This is based on opinions from the District’s legal counsel and Montana School Board Association legal representatives. This was not an agenda item because the only change at this time would be to either continue allowing groups to use the buildings or not allow groups not connected with the school to use the building, Gibbs sai...
SEELEY LAKE – At the Seeley-Swan Hospital District monthly meeting April 20, BeeHive Homes owner Ty Harding shared information and challenges regarding building an assisted living facility in Seeley Lake. The board looks forward to continuing these discussions at future meetings. BeeHive Homes offers assisted living and memory care. Based out of Missoula, they focus on smaller facilities designed to resemble residential homes and take a very personal approach to assisted living care services. Harding expects the need for assisted living and m...
SEELEY LAKE – At their April 20 meeting, the Seeley-Swan Hospital District board unanimously approved the letter to Partnership Health Center (PHC) acknowledging that the board members entering PHC facilities on official business will comply with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS) vaccination mandate. PHC presented them with the letter at their March meeting. The letter states that the board chair acknowledges that the board has a process in place to show that board members are either fully vaccinated or have an approved exe...
SEELEY LAKE - Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP) Missoula Region Supervisor Randy Arnold advised the Seeley Lake Community Council at their April 11 meeting that the RV Dump Station at Clearwater Junction won’t be operational again this year. The RV Dump Station has been managed by FWP for close to 20 years, Arnold said. Several years ago, issues began to develop with the dump station pump. The pump is an effluent pump which moves waste from the holding tanks to the drain field. “With some challenges to those pumps, we had, a number of tim...
SWAN VALLEY – On April 12, the Swan Valley School Board directed the administration and facilities personnel to seek bids for replacing the boiler, some exterior double doors and the middle school building windows. They also voted to participate in the Montana Aspiring Teacher Residency Program next year. The school has ESSER funds available until 2024 for building improvements. The board was hesitant to fix something that isn’t broken regarding the boiler system. Chairman Jimmy Boyd said, “We would buy a new one, and it could be broke down...
POTOMAC – The discussion between the Greenough-Potomac Fire Board and Developer John Richards regarding the Blanchard Creek property continued at the Board’s monthly meeting April 5. While the parties felt they need to pursue renegotiations or sale of the land, no amounts were floated and they wanted the attorneys’ input before moving forward. The Board and Richards signed the original agreement Sept. 4, 2007. The agreement stated that the Department would exchange their property on Sperry Grade for a one-and-a-half-acre lot within the Clear...
SEELEY LAKE – At their March 14 meeting, the Seeley Lake Community Council reviewed the new template from Missoula County for community councils, received updates on the Seeley Lake Ranger District and discussed the next steps regarding the RV Dump Station at Clearwater Junction. Missoula County Community and Planning Services Office Manager Laurie Hire presented the April 2021 by-laws template for community councils in Missoula County. She recommended the Council review these and update their by-laws since they have not been changed since t...
SEELEY LAKE – The Seeley Lake Fire Board voted March 15 to increase the base rates for ambulance service from $600 - $750 to $1,177 - $1,339 depending on the level of care. With this adjustment in rates, the board also approved Fire Chief Dave Lane to increase the base pay he is offering for the paramedic/firefighter position outreach from $40,000 to $50,000. The board also heard comments from the public regarding unprofessional conduct and a request to develop a strategic plan. Ambulance R...
SEELEY LAKE - Public comment at the March 15 Seeley Lake Elementary School Board Meeting has led the board to request a review of community use of school facilities. A local community member questioned the board regarding a religious group that was allowed to pray on school grounds. The community member stated the school is opening the door for all types of religious groups. In recent weeks, a religious group was allowed to enter the building on a Sunday, according to Josh Gibbs, Superintendent/Principal. He granted permission based on...
SEELEY LAKE – The Seeley Lake Sewer District Board continued to hone a water testing regiment for the lake and began discussing next year’s budget at their March 17 meeting. Over the last several months the Board has been discussing with Clearwater Resource Council (CRC) how to do water testing to assess the human impact on Seeley Lake. The Board amended their budget in November to allocate $5,515 for environmental DNA (eDNA) testing but learned last month that it would not be enough for a year. This month CRC came back with another tes...
SEELEY LAKE – At their March 8 meeting, the Seeley-Swan Hospital District discussed the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS) requirements as it applies to contractors, vendors and the Hospital District Board of Trustees (Board). Partnership Health Center (PHC) asked the Board to sign a letter acknowledging that the board members entering PHC facilities on official business are vaccinated or have an approved medical or religious exemption. The CMS mandate does not apply to the public. The CMS Mandate states, “In order to best prote...
SWAN VALLEY – The Swan Valley School Board discussed how to spend their Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funds and possibly changing the preschool program into a transitional kindergarten at their March 8 meeting. Principal Aaron Morgenstern said they had 20 responses to a survey regarding how to prioritize the school’s ESSER funding. Ten of the respondents identified themselves as “Parent” and nine identified as a “Community Member” while one was “Staff.” The survey respondents were asked to prioritize three categorie...
POTOMAC – At their March 1 meeting, the Greenough-Potomac Fire Board and Developer John Richards discussed their needs and concerns regarding building a fourth fire station on the Fire Department’s property on Blanchard Creek. Several questions were identified that Richards and the Board hope to address at the Board’s April meeting. The Greenough-Potomac Board of Trustees and Richards signed the original agreement Sept. 4, 2007. The agreement stated that the Department would exchange their property on Sperry Grade for at least an acre and a...
SEELEY LAKE – The Seeley Lake Elementary School board addresses correspondence and received updates from Superintendent Josh Gibbs at their Feb. 22 meeting. The school board received correspondence from a Seeley Lake resident and retired teacher asking if the school was teaching Critical Race Theory (CRT). The board reviewed the state Attorney General’s opinion on CRT that stated it was not to be taught in schools. Gibbs added the Office of Public Instruction gave them the same direction earlier in the year. “It is nothing we are teach...
SEELEY LAKE - The Seeley Lake Community Council hosted presentations at its Feb. 14 meeting on a wide range of topics including landlord and rental assistance, upcoming United States Forest Service proposed projects and reconstructing Highway 83 around Salmon Lake. Missoula County Landlord Liaison Alex Ramsing presented on his job and some of the classes and services Homeword offers to landlords, renters and homebuyers. Homeword is a Missoula-based nonprofit that works to strengthen Montana communities by teaching homebuyer education and...
POTOMAC – At their Feb. 14 meeting, the Potomac School Board approved their lease with the Potomac Greenough Community Center (PGCC) and the bid with Shadow Asphalt to pave the parking areas behind and in front of the school to meet ADA compliance. In other business, they received an update regarding the eighth grade trip fundraising and approved several contracts for next year. Chair Dr. Courtney Hathaway said much of the lease was the same with the PGCC. She highlighted some of the changes and explained why some of the cost increased. H...
