Growth policy meetings here
As Flathead County continues to formulate its growth policy - a document that outlines where and how the county will grow in the next 20 years - it is time for folks from the Columbia Falls area to give their two cents.
A public meeting designed to weigh public opinion on the county's future is scheduled for 1 p.m. Jan. 9 at the North Valley Community Room.
A second meeting is scheduled for Jan. 17 at 6 p.m. in the same location.
County planners have been stopping by nearly every community in the valley, testing the waters, so to speak, on how folks would like to see the future of the county play out.
The growth policy covers a wide gamut of issues - from housing density, to commercial use to industrial use. It also covers land planning directives such as future planning and zoning, affordable housing and traffic. It also covers a slew of quality of life issues, from bike paths to wildlife preservation.
Columbia Falls recently finished its growth policy - a plan that calls for high density housing on land just outside the city limits. It drew its fair share of critics, who didn't want to see the farmland and rural way of life lost. But city leaders noted that in order to grow, a typical city block has high-density housing. It short, if the city is going to annex or even provide services such as sewer and water that land had to be high density.
The county growth policy doesn't impact the city's growth policy - the two are separate but complimentary documents.
City OKs new sign
It's a problem that has plagued Nucleus Avenue for decades. How do you get people traveling down Highway 2 to turn left?
The Columbia Falls Chamber of Commerce has a possible solution - a sign. This is no ordinary sign, however. It's a $105,000 electronic sign.
The Columbia Falls City Council last month gave the sign its blessing, allowing it to be erected on city-owned land in front of Glacier Bank. Council gave the sign a thumbs up after hearing a presentation from Gary Hall and Lyle Mitchell. Mitchell, Hall and other chamber members have been investigating a sign for the city for years now.
The cost of the sign is covered entirely through a co-op funding program through the Signtronix Main Street America Co-op Program. The program blends matching funds through Signtronix - the manufacturer of the sign, and through sponsorship from businesses. There is no cost to the city or taxpayers.
After three years, the Chamber will own the sign for $1, Hall explained. Initially, $6,000 from a Community Block Grant will be used to cover costs to erect the sign. Business will pay to advertise on the electronic portion of the sign, which flashes both advertising and community events. Community events are designed to take up the bulk of the messaging, however.