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Valley Press - Mineral Independent
Support AnnaMarie White for SD45
My name is Ron White, I’ve been logging in western Montana for nearly 20 years. I am very concerned with the decisions being made in Helena that have led to the recent closures of three mills, one right here in Mineral County. Our current policy makers have voted for bills that create more red tape and prohibit loggers from going to work.Please join me in supporting AnnaMarie White for Senate District 45. AnnaMarie is a savvy businesswoman with strong conservative values, including the protection of our second amendment rights. A vote for AnnaMarie White is a vote for opening up the forest for business.We cannot afford one more session of policy making that results in the crippling of our logging industry.Annamarie did not choose politics, she is simply responding to the overwhelming public outcry for a true conservative option.If you’re concerned about the future of Mineral County go to voteannamariewhite.com to learn more.— Ron White, Alberton
Lolo Forest OKs Superior North project
The Lolo National Forest on Friday issued a final decision notice for the Superior North project.The project is located on the Superior Ranger District between St. Regis and Superior in the Mill, Fourmile, Slowey, Keystone and Pardee Creek drainages, and on the slope above Montana 135 and the “Cutoff” section of the Clark Fork River.The decision authorizes vegetation and fuel reduction treatments on approximately 13,000 acres (mixture of commercial and non-commercial treatments) and road management activities across the nearly 44,000-acre project area.The project is located in one of the highest risk firesheds in the nation, Superior #270, and aligns with...
Superior moving back to Class C in some sports
Scorecard, scorecard, can’t tell the players (or conference?) without a scorecard.The dudes who used to hawk programs and scorecards outside ballparks would likely have a fit trying to keep up with the changes in Montana High School sports classifications, particularly in Superior.The driving force behind the changes is changing enrollment levels, including the latest forecast that has caused the Montana High School Association (MHSA) to move Superior back to Class C in boys and girls basketball, track and field, and volleyball for the 2024-25 season. Also moving to a new classification in Superior is golf, where the boys and girls’...
Iron Mountain Road update
Cutting across steep mountain slopes on the south side of the Clark Fork River, the road is formally called the Iron Mountain/Cyr Road. But my family and friends called it by a less imaginative name, “The Road Behind the Mill.” The road ran behind the old Diamond Match mill, at least when you viewed it from the Superior side. Residents would sled down its steeper grades. The road offered great views of the valley below. It also offered a back road for a teenage boy to ride his mini-motor bike to a friend’s house on Sunrise Creek.My parents surprisingly allowed...
Mineral Community Hospital expands offerings
Scheduling important medical appointments and arranging vital procedures can be a challenge living out in rural Montana. Hospitals and clinics are spread few and far between the mountainous landscape that makes up Mineral County. But patients do have options and to save a trip to Missoula they can explore the recent expansions and range of services at Mineral Community Hospital in Superior.Superior native and hospital CEO Laurel Chambers Haskins detailed the new additions and improvements to the county’s only medical center.The hospital added a new ambulance bay to connect the clinic to the hospital with a large waiting room. "This way...
COLUMN: A thank you
When describing a sporting event, it is often nearly impossible to put pen to paper without the use of terms like “battling,” “fight to the last minute,” "comeback," etc.Those same things apply to life, this I now see more clearly than ever before.For so many people, life is like a basketball game with two seconds remaining and a potential game-winning shot on the way to the rim.It goes in, the crowd (at least the home folks) cheer. It falls short and the gym feels like a giant balloon in the act of deflating.If you are lucky, you bounce back from...
Alberton's Fredette flies to second at Anaconda meet
They are few in number, but the few are having a productive track and field season.Sophomore Shea Fredette, a multi-sport standout, placed second in the men’s varsity triple jump at the John Cheek Top 8 Western B-C track and field meet this past week as the Alberton High track and field meet finished tied for 15th in a field of 22 teams from the region.Fredette recorded a hop, skip and jump of 39-4 at the meet in Anaconda’s Mitchell Stadium, edging out senior Wade Dahood of Anaconda by 1 1/2 inch to claim second place.Drummond’s Brody Rasor won the event...
GOP candidates meet at Lincoln-Reagan dinner
The Mineral County Republican Central Committee held their annual Lincoln-Reagan dinner at the St. Regis Community Center with over 100 people attending. Candidates gave a short introduction and met with county residents. From left, Jeff Stanek for HD 90, Charles Walking Child for U.S. Senate, Shawn Smalley for Mineral County Commissioner, U.S. Rep. Ryan Zinke, Dawn Terrill (Incumbent) Mineral County Commissioner, Tim Sheehy for U.S. Senate, Secretary of State Christi Jacobson, state Rep. Denley Loge for SD 45, Curtis Cochran for HD 90, and AnnaMarie White for SD 45.
Osweiler to hold camp at Legends July 20
High school and youth football players should circle July 20 on their calendars — Brock Osweiler is once again coming back to Kalispell to help with the Flathead Braves Football Camp.The day starts with a Quarterback-Receivers-Tight Ends throwing session for high school athletes from 9-10:30 a.m. at Legends Stadium. Then a youth camp for players in Grades 3-8 will run from 10:30 a.m.-noon.That will be followed by a “Legends of Flathead at Flathead” tailgate. Braves football coach Caleb Aland aims to have as many former Flathead athletic standouts attend as possible.It will be open to all the campers, and food will be provided by 406 BBQ and Sweet Peaks Ice Cream.Osweiler was a standout basketball and football player at Flathead from 2006-08, who then played quarterback at Arizona State University ahead of a 7-year NFL career with the Denver Broncos and Houston Texans. He retired in 2019.Registration is $15 and can be done through at fhsbravesfootball.com: Go to “Schedules” and hit Camp Info.For more information contact Coach Aland at fhsbravesfootball@gmail.com.
Montana Supreme Court sides with state in water right dispute
The Montana Supreme Court has sided with the state’s Department of Natural Resources and Conservation in a dispute involving a 64-year-old water right that’s used to irrigate both private and public land.In a unanimous opinion authored by Justice Beth Baker, the court ruled that the state retains an ownership interest in a water right first claimed in 1960 by John Schutter of Gallatin County. The water right is somewhat unique in that it’s supported by a well that was drilled on private land, but used to irrigate both private and public land. Debra and Sidney Schutter use that well to...
Arrival of migrant family in Kalispell spurs concerns from Montana politicians
A migrant family of five flew into Kalispell from New York on Wednesday and ended up on the doorstep of the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office, said Sheriff Brian Heino.The family — a husband, wife and kids — crossed the U.S.-Mexico border in Texas and were flown to New York and then from New York to Kalispell, Heino said. After first trying to find lodging at an area homeless shelter and having been turned away, they ended up in the lobby of the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office looking for help, he said. “They were told that this is a great place to...
Hot Springs woman killed in U.S. 93 crash
A 71-year-old Hot Springs woman died Wednesday as a result of injuries she sustained in a T-bone car crash April 29 near Somers.The fatal collision occurred at about 10:30 a.m., at the intersection of Montana 82 and U.S. 93 south of Kalispell, according to a Montana Highway Patrol crash report.A 31-year-old Whitefish man was driving a Volkswagen Tiguan south on U.S. 93 with the Hot Springs woman in the passenger seat. The Tiguan driver turned left, failing to yield to an oncoming GMC Sierra 2500 pickup, and was hit on the passenger side.The Hot Springs woman sustained a broken neck, back and a ruptured spleen, and was transported to Logan Health Medical Center. The driver of the Tiguan was not injured.The 43-year-old Columbia Falls man driving the GMC pickup also sustained injuries and was taken to the hospital.Road conditions were reported as mostly dry.
PHOTO: Fire safety meeting
Dave Brink and Cindy Peterson held a class in the old DeBorgia School on creating defensible space around your home before the fire season begins. Included in the free class was information on trees (including fruit trees), shrubs and other perennials that thrive in the west end of Mineral County. Both Brink and Peterson are with the MSU Extension Office out of Montana State University with Peterson being a Forestry Specialist Associate.
CSKT attorney Danna Jackson tapped for District Court judgeship
President Joe Biden has tapped an attorney for the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes to replace Judge Dana Christensen in the U.S. District Court of Montana.Danna Jackson, a former U.S. attorney who served as chief legal counsel to the Montana Department of Natural Resources from 2016 to 2021, would be the first Native American federal judge in Montana if her nomination is confirmed. She worked as an attorney within the U.S. Department of the Interior from 2021 to 2023. Christensen, who was appointed to Montana’s federal court by then-President Barack Obama in 2011, announced in 2022 that he would assume senior...
Construction begins on I-90 near Montana-Idaho border
A section of I-90 near the Montana-Idaho line will be undergoing an all-summer project. The Montana Department of Transportation, along with construction partner Acme Concrete Paving, Inc., will begin pavement reconstruction activities 3 miles east of the border and continues east for approximately 3 miles, ending near the Taft Interchange. The project runs from mile marker 3.4 to mile marker 5.7. The purpose of this construction project is to extend the service life of the roadway.Weather permitting, the project is anticipated to begin the week of May 6 and will take two entire construction seasons to complete with crews working...
Legals for May, 1 2024
MINERAL COUNTY COMMISSIONERS PUBLIC HEARING FOR A PETITION TO ABANDON A PORTION OF AN ALLEYWAY, LOCATED BETWEEN LOTS 1-7 OF BLOCK 5 AND LOTS 1-5 OF BLOCK 8, IN THE CROW’S NEST TOWNSITE, BOOK OF TOWNSITES NUMBER 7 HAUGAN, MT The hearing will be held on May 10, 2024 at 2:00 PM in the Commissioners Conference Room, located in the Courthouse Annex, 300 River Street, Superior. Richard D. and Kathleen J. Underwood, owners of Lots 1-7 of Block 5 and Lots 1-5 of Block 8 of the Crow’s Nest Townsite, Book of Townsites Number 7, DO HEREBY REQUEST...
'Star Wars' themed Galactic Gala benefits PEAK Foundation
"A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away" is how the 1977 "Star Wars" movie opened. The entire world eventually came to know the characters and story lines from the ongoing episodes on the big and small screens, still to this day. It’s a series that has a feel-good story line with action, romance, technology never dreamed of before, and a bar scene that nobody will ever forget.This Saturday there is an opportunity to take your "Star Wars" interest up a couple of levels while benefiting the youngsters in the Alberton area at the same time. "May the...
Michael Edward Needham, 58
Michael Edward NeedhamJanuary 28, 1966 - March 9, 2024Michael Edward Needham left this world too soon on March 9, 2024. He passed away at home after suffering a cardiac event.While his heart would finally give out, all who knew Mike would tell you it was that same heart which made him the kind, caring, gentle and generous soul we will all profoundly miss. He was always putting others before himself. His loved ones already miss his off-beat humor and terrible dancing.An avid and accomplished home chef and baker, food was his love language. His jerk chicken and cheesecake recipes will...
Loge offers balanced viewpoint
Denley Loge first ran for election as state representative for Sanders, Mineral, and Missoula counties in 2016. Even though he ran as a Republican, I not only supported him, but I had also encouraged him to run. I had known Denley for the eight years I was his Democratic state senator for those same counties (2001-2009) and he helped me as I campaigned for that position—twice. So while Denley decided to be a Republican, I thought he was the same Denley who would listen respectfully to people with opposite views and make sensible decisions based on a balanced viewpoint.I still think that, and so I encourage a vote for Denley Loge in the Republican primary election for Senate District 45.— Jim Elliott, Trout Creek
Valley Press - Mineral Independent
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We are the local newspapers for Sanders & Mineral Counties in Montana. The Clark Fork Valley Press is published in Plains, and the Mineral Independent is based in Superior. Both papers are published weekly on Wednesdays. Our office (at 105 W. Lynch St., Plains MT 59859) is open Mon. - Fri. 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.
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