Serving Proudly As The Voice Of Valley County Since 1913
Serving Proudly As The Voice Of Valley County Since 1913
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In light of the ongoing trade dispute with China, the Courier arranged an interview with former Ambassador to China and Senator from Montana, Max Baucus. This interview was conducted an the afternoon of Tuesday, Sept, 4, the day federal aid became available to farmers impacted by the trade dispute. Max Baucus served as ambassador to China from February, 2014, through January, 2017, when the new administration installed their own appointment, which had him in China during the presidential...
In front of a rare sirloin steak (“It can’t be too rare” according to the Congressman) and a bottle of domestic beer, the U.S. Representative for Montana Greg Gianforte talked through key issues and policy priorities with local leaders that included Mayor Becky Erickson, County Commissioners John Fahlgren and Paul Tweten, Chief of Glasgow Police Brien Gault and candidate for Sheriff Tom Boyer, among others. In a fast-paced conversation riddled with interruptions, jokes and anecdotes, Gianforte keyed in on issues to include law enfor...
After nearly a year in office, Donald Trump has finally achieved his first legislative victory. Just three days before Christmas, President Trump signed the Tax Cut and Jobs Act into law. He describes it as a “big, beautiful Christmas gift” to the American people. Trump and Republicans claim this overhaul will put more money back into the pockets of ordinary Americans, stimulate growth, and create jobs. Which is a bold statement, especially since numerous analyses show that the legislation will ultimately raise taxes on millions in the mid...
I know it. Most Montanans know it. At its core, the strength of Montana’s economy and our way of life relies on the power of a strong public education system. Nowhere is that more clear than on a road trip in Montana. Here is my most recent road trip story. At Miles Community College, I heard story after story of students attending agriculture programs and then going back to the family farm to substantially increase the farm’s productivity through techniques learned in school. Young Montanans can earn a two-year degree by age 20 and then the...
Having been born and raised in Montana I found myself parroting the very ideals I thought made my state great. I adored the conservative, evangelical, fiscally responsible and socially restrictive nature of conservatism for no other reason than that is what everyone else said was true. It wasn’t until I travelled and experienced the world that I began to form my own views, taking on the ideal that what business is it of anyone else what people do privately, and why is it that in the richest country in the world we can have billionaires and home...
Dear Governor Bullock: I, David Pippin, a lifelong resident of Valley County (political subdivision of the State of Montanan), do here by protest the “HiLine Proposed Resource Management Plan and Final Environmental Impact Statement (PRMP/FEIS)" on foundation herein. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM), contrary to the Administrative Procedures Act (APA) and the Data Quality Act (DQA) have ignored many pertinent facts, previously published in a BLM sponsored study publications, and not preformed the requirements for a document of this magnitude...
The time is rapidly approaching when the US Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) has to do something or get-off-the-pot concerning listing the greater sage grouse under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). However, a reprieve may be in the making as Congress debates a bill that would postpone listing for another 10 years. I would bet the Service and their supporters are quietly lobbying hard for passage of this bill since it not only lets them off the hook (I will try to explain why this is...
Only a week after the presidential veto, TransCanada officials made their rounds talking with local officials and groups in town. Bud Anderson, an employee of Western Energy Planning who is an independent contractor for TransCanada, met with the city council on Monday, March 2. He updated the city council that that the lawsuit in Nebraska allowed TransCanada to obtain the remaining land needed in Nebrask for the pipeline, and that they currently have over 80 percent of the land for the pipeline there, and 100 percent of the land in Montana and...
The last few decades in Montana have seen a remarkable recovery in wildlife populations. For example, Montana’s elk population was down to almost 20,000 animals in 1940. By 1970 it had increased somewhat to 55,000. But after that we’ve seen rapid growth to nearly 160,000 animals today. That’s simply an astounding recovery. And other species, like deer and antelope, are at or near all-time highs. The restoration of Montana wildlife is due to a number of factors, but the predominant reason is the efforts of landowners. A great deal of the credi...
January • Has Glasgow really been sucked into some vortex that's dropped the temperatures below zero? The easy answer is no. Tanja Fransen, warning coordination meteorologist at National Weather Service Glasgow, explains that this is actually a low pressure system that came down from the North Pole and brought cold weather with it. The Arctic cold front pushed down farther south than usual, which brought colder than average temperatures to much of the nation. • Resigning one city council sea...
The city council has approved the bid for a downtown revitalization plan from Land Solutions, LLC. At $12,000, it was the lowest bid. Other bids that came in were at $20,000 and higher. Land Solutions' proposal outlined working with the city staff and the planning board committee to strategize public participation and finish a plan to approach the project proposal. The public will be included to gather trends and gather issues and priorities. Other key efforts will involve zoning, streetscapes and reviewing historical information of previous...
It's a big number, maybe a tough one to swallow. The number is an estimated $7,566,100. That is what Morrison-Mairle Inc. proposed for all the improvements at the water treatment plant (WTP) in Glasgow. A few members of the community attended the public hearing that took place at the city council meeting on Monday, April 7. Jeremy Perlinski and Jeff Ashley gave an overview to city council members and those in attendance at the meeting of what was discussed at the first preliminary engineering...
Something that may not be a shock to some is that housing in Glasgow may be hard to come by. The growth policy Glasgow has developed shows that there is a lack in affordable housing in the area. Key findings in the report show that in 2010 around 85 percent of housing in Glasgow was built prior to 1976. The percentage of home ownership was also lower here than in the state and nation. Glasgow’s rate of ownership is at 63.2 percent, while the state sits at 68 percent and the nation at 65.1 percent. Another number found in the report shows t...
As more home businesses are becoming part of today’s culture and Glasgow is shifting into a time of change, the city has looked to add a growth policy. The decision was made to go ahead with the policy through the firm DJ&A. Recently, the company asked Glasgow for an additional $3,000 for their work on the growth policy and they were denied it as the city signed a contract to pay a set amount. The growth policy was needed to help make changes to local zoning ordinances. Those ordinances have become outdated with the new changes, and some t...
The city of Glasgow’s Growth Policy project team held four focus group and visioning workshop meetings at the Civic Center last week. The Housing Focus Group met Wednesday evening, and three meetings were held Thursday: Community Services and Infrastructure, Land Use and Community Visioning. Project manager Matt Ulberg said the Community Visioning group was the capstone of this effort to assemble the vision of this community. In January the team had a public meeting to launch the Growth Policy project that was well-attended. As team member J...
The Valley County commissioners voted Tuesday to publish a notice of their intent to dissolve the defunct City-County Planning Board. It is a housekeeping measure to clear the old joint board off the books since the city of Glasgow has informed the county of their desire to form a new city planning board. Valley County has its own planning board. The old joint board has not met since around 2003, according to Commissioner Dave Pippin. The old City-County Planning Board was formed by a county resolution in January 1959, after the city notified...
