Independently owned since 1905
Independently owned since 1905
Sorted by date Results 601 - 625 of 1023
The Plains Town Council last week approved the 2021/2022 fiscal year budget of just over $8-million, an increase of 16% from last year's budget. Four council members - Chris Allen, the council president, Connie Foust, Joel Banham, and Chad Cantrell from his home on the phone - unanimously approved the budget at last Tuesday's meeting at City Hall. The council approved the preliminary budget in June and later held a public hearing, but few people attended, according to Mayor Dan Rowan. The...
There's a new veterinary clinic in Plains with a new name, but she's no stranger to faces of Sanders County - human or animal. Dr. Abby Ingram of Thompson Falls Veterinary Clinic has decided to expand her services to Plains, buying the practice of Dr. Alan Marley, who recently retired. The official purchase date was Sept. 3, but Ingram and her staff have been filling in at the site of the Lynch Creek Animal Clinic for two or three days a week. Now, under the name Wild Horse Veterinary Clinic,...
The mayor of Plains declared at last week’s council meeting that he was rescinding the mandatory water restrictions now that the area has had some cooler days and precipitation. At the same time, council members passed the second reading of the “Emergency Ordinance and Ordinance to Adopt Procedure to Reduce Water Use During Emergency Conditions.” With the new ordinance approved and in place, the town would not have to go through the time of voting on it again; the mayor has the authority to renew water restrictions in the future. The first...
It's unknown how many people attended the Sanders County Fair last week because there is no general entry fee, but fair manager Melissa Cady estimated that around 20,000 people walked the grounds over the four days - and that could be a record. "We had a great turnout, lots of people. Vendors said they've sold more this year than the last three years. It's been an excellent year. We will see everyone in 2022," she said. The Sanders County Concessions Group, a nonprofit organization, had only thr...
Firefighters extinguished a fire at the Sanders County Refuse Site at Plains last week, as the light smell of the smoke drifted across the Clark Fork River, leading some to believe there was another wildfire. A patron at the Plains Golf Course called in the fire to the dispatch center at Thompson Falls at 6:40 p.m. last Wednesday, said James Russell, fire chief at the Plains-Paradise Rural Fire District, which responded to the blaze with seven trucks. Firefighters from the Montana Department of...
The Sanders County Fair bull riding competition drew loud cheers as the mighty beasts tossed their temporary riders like dolls, but this year the crowd's cheers weren't just for the professionals. A group of amateurs decided to take part in one of the most perilous sports in America. And perhaps the loudest ovations were for the three Plains men who thought they could possibly hang on for more than just a few seconds. Tanner Ovitt, Austin Stafford and Bryce Henning paid the $50 entry fee to...
Auctioneer Kevin Hill likes to keep it light and joke with the youth at the Sanders County 4-H Market Stock Sale, but the tide was turned when Hot Springs Wrangler Aubrey Tulloch entered the arena with her angus and told a joke about an auctioneer losing his marbles. The 16-year-old Tulloch has been a 4-H member for six years, including one with the South Side Sparks. She said she looked up auctioneer jokes on the internet before the sale. Her joke drew a big applause from the nearly 200...
The kneeling silhouetted soldier is back once again on the greenway in Plains to bring military veteran suicide awareness to the public's eye, but now he's accompanied by the likeness of a female soldier to represent woman veterans that have been the victims of suicide. "Women served in the military, too, and they commit suicide, too - same with spouses of men in the military," said Ed Foste, who retired from the Navy and suffers of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) from days of carrier...
Plains School officials held a ribbon cutting ceremony to dedicate its new multi-use facility Thursday afternoon. "The building was based on the needs versus the wants of the district," Plains School Superintendent Thom Chisholm said at the dedication ceremony, where he assisted in cutting the orange and black ribbon inside the new gymnasium with Neptune Lynch IX, a 1943 graduate of Plains High School and a substantial donor to the $1.75-million facility. "New is a great color, it looks great...
One Sanders County organization has discovered an ingenious way to put old worn out bicycles to good use. They might have flat tires, broken chains, missing seats, bent frames, and are peppered with rust, but together, with their mismatched colors, styles and sizes, they have a purpose - a flashy fence. The Paradise Center's bike fence presently has 24 bikes along a railing that separates the two parking lots. One of the latest bicycles was a Sears 24-inch single speed from Paradise resident...
The Sanders County Fair’s green, green grass will start filling with feet on Sept. 2, the beginning of fair week, and by week’s end the smooth dirt of the main arena will be torn up, possibly still showing crash evidence with car parts on the surface from the fair’s biggest event — the demolition derby. Manager Melissa Cady said the fair is going to be amazing this year with 25 food and drink vendors and 150 commercial vendors — a record — and will include world famous chainsaw carver Steven Higgins of Missouri, who will be auctioning...
Two Sanders County nonprofit organizations have merged to become one entity in an effort to be more effective and to help administratively streamline operations. The Sanders County Arts Council recently dissolved and is now part of the Paradise Center, which continues under the umbrella of the Paradise Elementary School Preservation Committee. Instead of the two groups sometimes competing for fundraising money, they will now consolidate fundraising efforts for a common goal, according to Karen Thorson, the Paradise Center’s secretary. H...
The arena motocross event at Sanders County Fairgrounds last weekend was a big success, according to Jamie Larsen, who ran the two-day competition with her husband, Tyler. The Top Dawg Arena Cross competition drew more than 250 spectators on Friday and some 400 were in the stands Saturday evening, attracting over 60 racers each day. The competitors included 17 racers from Trout Creek, Thompson Falls and Plains, ranging from 6-year-old Gavin Gamboa to 39-year-old Anthony Young, both of Plains....
The Sanders County Sewer District at Paradise board continues to plan for its new sewer system and though opposition also continues, the community division is getting narrower, according to Terry Caldwell, who conducted the sewer board meeting Friday. "My goal is to bring the community together - the board, Bridger and the community, because we're all neighbors and friends, and that's important to me," said Caldwell, who ran the meeting in the absence of Sunny Chase, the board president. Chase...
Plains High School is welcoming a new principal this school year. Ryon Noland, 46, will be taking over for Kevin Meredith, who is transitioning to the K-6 principal post. Noland's first day was Aug. 12. "I have been working in the school since July 1 to get a jump start on the upcoming school year," Noland said. The new principal took several days last spring to become better acquainted with all the stakeholders of Plains school district, including conversing with fellow staff and volunteering...
Despite the high heat and continued COVID jitters, more than 300 people decided to go for "baroque" at Quinn's Hot Springs Resort last week to hear musicians of international caliber. It was the 17th Annual Montana Baroque Music Festival. Most of the music had been composed some 400 years ago, but it's still going strong today, according to Adam LaMotte, a violinist in the festival and its artistic director. "Baroque music is very lovely and still lively," said the Portland, Oregon, resident....
The 6th Annual Court Appointed Special Advocates Ice Cream Social was a big success. "We raised money, we raised awareness and we got two new advocates," said Colleen McCarthy, the primary organizer of the two-hour CASA event at Sanders County Fairgrounds Sunday afternoon. It was the biggest fundraiser of the year for CASA, fetching $4,217 from donations and from a silent auction. "CASA is a nationwide program of volunteer advocates who investigate the cases of abused and neglected children in...
Kids at Plains School finished their "Summer Program" last week with a special dessert social and water games on the school football field. For nearly the entire month of July, more than 60 kids from kindergarten to eighth grade participated in several activities, such as sports, safety, community awareness, technology and cooking. Cooking was the specialty for Debbie Brown, coordinator of the four-week program, the result of a $7,500 grant from the Headwaters Foundation in Missoula. The other...
The Plains Town Council passed an emergency ordinance at its monthly meeting at City Hall Monday evening in an effort to conserve water during this long period of drought. Council members discussed the situation for a short time before voting unanimously to pass the first reading of the “Emergency Ordinance and Ordinance to Adopt Procedure to Reduce Water Use During Emergency Conditions.” According to the ordinance, written by the town’s attorney, Richard Gebhardt, the town has experienced extraordinary demand on its water supply, capac...
A summer job can sometimes be a bridge to more permanent employment, and that could certainly be the case for members of the Youth Conservation Corps, which made an actual bridge in Lolo National Forest last week about 15 miles west of Plains. Two boys and two girls - Jody Detlaff, 18, Faith Palmer, 15, and Tyler Battles, 17, all of Thompson Falls, and Jim Hanson, 15 of Plains - were the only YCC participants this year, a much smaller group than usual, according to Marie Errecart, who headed the...
The numbers were lower this year, but not the enthusiasm of the near 100 players for the 7th Annual Wildhorse Showdown Softball Tournament at Amundson Sports Complex at Plains last weekend. Only seven teams - eight teams fewer than last year - participated in the 2.5-day tournament and when it was done on Sunday team ClitRus rose from the infield dust as victors, defeating the second place Studs 13-3. There were only three Sanders County teams, all from Plains this year – Lei Out, sponsored b...
It looks like motocross is coming back to Plains. It’s been nearly 10 years since the rumble of cycles could be heard rounding the fairgrounds arena, but now an organization from Kalispell is looking to put on a motocross competition in August. On Friday, the Sanders County Fair Commission voted unanimously in favor of allowing Top Dawg Arena Cross to have motocross racing Friday and Saturday, August 20 and 21, in the fairgrounds main arena. Fair board members discussed Top Dawg Arena Cross’ request at its regular meeting last Wednesday, but...
Paradise Gardens has had an army of workers tackling the flowing fields of purple over the last two weeks. They have a large tract to go and there's no end to the heat wave in sight. That doesn't impact the rows and rows of lavender to be harvested, but owner Paula Scoggins is concerned with the health of the 11 volunteers plucking and packing the plants and limits their time in the sun accordingly. "I want them to have fun and not act like it's just a job. You're hanging out with the bees and...
MT West Dentist in Plains has changed hands, but the previous owner and new owner hope to continue excellent care to its community of patients. Dr. Blake Sherwood and his wife, Dana, purchased MT West Dentist from Doctors Andrew and Elizabeth Ordelheide, who had the business since 2011 when it was in a rented building in downtown Plains. The Ordelheides then purchased the former Wildhorse Elementary School in 2015 and converted the 83-year-old building into a dental business. The Sherwoods and...
The Town of Plains has applied for a new COVID-related grant that could mean a new well and help with several other water issues. With only six hours before the deadline, Mayor Dan Rowan filed a two-page American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) application to the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation last Thursday. With the aid of Shari Johnson, the town's contracted engineer, Rowan listed four of the top priority projects, starting with asking for $1,375,000 for a new well, which Rowa...
