Leave Central Avenue alone

Could we please leave poor old Central Avenue alone? It's just fine the way it is. Whitefish has been "diddled" and "improved" until it has lost its unique character.

People come to small mountain towns because they are special and different from one another, but this town is trying to look like every other supposedly posh resort area. Just take care of infrastructure and make sure there are still plenty of trees and clean water.

If you want to improve Central Avenue, create another place for the double-wide, double-high, double-long, double gas-consuming trucks to park. They take up too much space and block the view of smaller cars that are trying to back out.

Also, the enforcing the U-turn laws would create revenue and possibly prevent accidents and aggravation.

Sharlot Battin

Whitefish

Streetscape alternatives

When surveyed, visitors were asked what they like about Whitefish? "It's a real city, not a man-made Vail, Aspen or Breckenridge. You have a hardware store, children's clothing, a print shop (2), a thrift store, a drug store (now gone), City Hall 'soon gone) a curfew siren (gone). The sidewalk displays are fun."

However, for years, at least one council member will bring up getting rid of the sidewalk displays.

"It's hard to walk fast in town. When you're in a hurry, there are clothing racks, barbecue grills, pottery, etc. all in the way. When you're short of time, you can't get through all those displays and people."

One day, the street will be ordered clear of displays, becoming one-way traffic and eventually pedestrian foot-traffic only.

As soon as we can get rid of that unsightly hardware store and replace it with a Banana Republic or an Old Navy, Starbucks, a walk-in McDonald's and a Victoria's Secret, we can be a real town, just like those nice ones we see in California.

I think we should have an aquarium and some street mimes. How about we dome the city and put in a monorail from the parking lots by the dog park and next to the hospital? We need to close State Park. Campers. Yuk.

New York City: The Big Apple, Chicago: The Windy City, St. Louis: Gateway to the West, Denver: The Mile High City, St. Petersburg, Fla.: The Home of the Newly Wed and the Nearly Dead. If we take three feet away from the width of the street, we'll have, Whitefish: Back Up Until You Hear Glass.

Bill Milner

Whitefish

Thanks for the help

As a new resident of Whitefish, I am impressed and inspired by the people of this community. Raised in Polson, I've relocated from Seattle after 20 years in the software industry.

At first, I could not believe the dramatic changes in this community, but quickly I realized that the heart of this community remains unchanged.

Recently, the non-profit school I work for acquired a donation of 37 computers. Scott and Janet Henderson, of Total Label, offered their IT department at no charge whatsoever to us to completely set up this system.

After countless hours invested, we now have a new state-of-the-art network for our students, teachers and staff.

The citizens of this community may be the only natural assets which outshine the geography of this little slice of heaven.

Todd Kotila

Headmaster

Whitefish Christian Academy