Michael Howell

  Spring is a really busy time in the Bitterroot for almost any kind of work, but if I had my choice, I’d rather go fishing. Some lucky kids get a chance to do just that. The kids taking the Bitterroot Buggers’ after school fly fishing program at the Hamilton Middle School for instance, get […]

Your chance to walk across the Red Line There is a chance coming up for the general public to do what will soon be forbidden, that is to walk across the Red Line at Marcus Daly Memorial Hospital’s new Surgical Center, the line that stops anyone but qualified personnel from approaching the critical areas of […]

The Bitter Root Humane Society has been around a long time. It was started in 1972, located where the Hamilton City Wastewater treatment plant is now located. In 1984, Countess Margit Bessenyey leased the current location on Fairgrounds Road to the Humane Association for $1 per year. When she died, the estate donated the current […]

The Stevensville Town Council had an item on its Thursday night agenda to discuss and possibly decide “to hold a Committee of the Whole meeting for the purpose of discussing the Mayor’s Employee Reorganization Plan and its implementation.” Instead, the council decided on the spot to rescind the plan. Then on Friday morning, town clerk […]

Officials from Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks were in Florence last week at a community meeting sponsored by the Riverview Orchards Landowners Association to address the homeowners’ growing problem with browsing herds of deer, some even showing threatening and aggressive behavior towards pets and humans. Fish, Wildlife and Parks Bitterroot Wildlife Biologist Rebecca […]

The Bitterroot National Forest is inviting the public to review and make comments on the East Fork Ditch Fish Screen Project. The project proposes to install a fish screen on the headgate of the East Fork Ditch. The East Fork Ditch is located on the north bank of the East Fork Bitterroot River at river […]

All the signs of spring are showing up in Hamilton. The robins are out rebuilding their old nests and the city’s cold-patch crew is out filling potholes. Donny Ramer, Director of Hamilton’s Public Works Department, told the City Council last week that he will soon have a full inventory of the potholes that can then […]

After several weeks of negotiations, the Ravalli County Commissioners have reached a preliminary agreement with Brad Mildenberger to purchase about 120 acres of land adjoining the Ravalli County Airport for $3 million for the purpose of runway expansion. The commissioners voted last Friday to forward that preliminary agreement to the Federal Aviation Administration for approval […]

Judy Hoy, local wildlife rehabilitator and author of the book, “Changing Faces – The Consequences of Exposure to Gene and Thyroid Disrupting Toxins”, published in 2017, has tried unsuccessfully for decades to get the state of Montana to look into the possibility that the birth defects and health issues that she was observing in white-tailed […]

If you are looking to do some socializing and thinking of a fun night out with dinner and music in Stevensville, then you can mark April 13th on your calendar and plan to attend “A Novel Affair,” a fundraiser sponsored by the North Valley Public Library Foundation. The event includes a dinner and silent auction […]

As part of his application process with the Montana Department of Environmental Quality to expand his gravel pit located northeast of Stevensville on the Eastside Highway, owner Jake Yoder sent notification of his application to property owners in the area giving them the opportunity to request a public hearing on the application or not. If […]

Back in 2004, a Resource Assessment Team came to Darby as part of a statewide effort led by Montana Economic Developers Association and several state and federal agencies and organizations, and hosted seven listening sessions, which were designed to help the residents determine the challenges, strengths and future visions for the community.  Topics like growth, […]