If it wasn’t enough for the Great Falls Public School District to deforest the Great Falls High School original campus by cutting down 80 mature and environmentally beneficial city trees without a permit, now they want to do the same thing to a neighborhood icon, Kranz Park. Donated to the City of Great Falls by…
What is the purpose of an elected city commission? As representatives of the citizens how should commissioners direct the affairs of government? Should they simply be an affirmative “rubber stamp” for staff policy and actions, or should they play a larger role in the decision-making process? Some would say that we hire professionals to run…
It doesn’t matter how big a hurry you are in, it pays to obey traffic signals. As we all know, not following traffic laws can negatively impact your safety and your wallet. Most traffic laws are based upon good old common sense. Speeding, distracted driving and observing the conditions of the road are some primary…
As I suggested in a previous article, by all measure the new Indoor Recreation and Aquatics Facility should be developed at Lions Park. Lions Park is centrally located, has suitable soils conditions, affords access to hotels and restaurants, is a six-minute drive from MAFB and is of sufficient size while still leaving ample buffers for…
If you are asking why the site selection for the new proposed Indoor Recreation and Aquatics Facility looks like a train wreck waiting to happen, you are not alone. If you have been a resident of Great Falls for even a few years, you probably are aware of the soils issues on the east end…
Here are a few Great Falls City Commission updates and answers to questions and comments I’ve received from folks recently. COVID-19 City County Health Officer Trisha Gardiner provided an update at Tuesday’s city commission meeting and there’s some good news: the numbers in Cascade County are heading in the right direction over the past week…
It may be time to pull the plug on the new Great Falls aquatics and recreation center. At the December 1 Great Falls City Commission meeting, City Manager Greg Doyon gave an update on the design progress of the proposed facility. Mr. Doyon emphasized that fiscal sustainability and addressing the well-known soils deficiencies of the…
While hypocrisy isn’t exclusive to politicians, it certainly is more disappointing when we see it in our elected officials. Case in point. At last week’s Great Falls City Commission work session, Commissioner Mary Moe presented a draft resolution addressing nondiscrimination, which she authored. Her cover letter includes the following: “I am attaching a draft resolution…
As a Great Falls City Commissioner I am always open to and interested in hearing suggestions, criticisms, and plain ol’ complaints from my fellow citizens about how City employees and officials are performing or how City policy is working, or not working. I do my best to bring citizen’s concerns to the attention of the…
THE GREAT FALLS AQUATIC CENTER – BOON, OR BOONDOGGLE? In 2018, Great Falls’ only indoor swimming pool, the Morony Natatorium, or Nat as it was affectionately known, was closed after 52 years of service to the community. It replaced an older Natatorium which was demolished in 1963. You may be reminded of the original Nat…