Sign up for the free Missoula This Week newsletter and stay in the loop on Missoula city government, public school meetings, business news and upcoming entertainment and events. Sign up 12/05/2025 “Missoula This Week” is reported and written By Katie Fairbanks. Send your Missoula news and tips to [email protected]. Missoula County officials requesting project details before deciding next steps Missoula County is holding off issuing a permit for a proposed gravel pit near Bonner until the developer provides more information.  The Missoula County commissioners sent a letter on Thursday to the developer’s representative, asking for details not typically required in a permit application. The action follows a November request from area residents that the commission enact emergency zoning and halt the project.  The 66-acre forested property is located at 14815 Highway 200 E., across the highway from the Blackfoot River. The property is unzoned, allowing for a variety of uses, including the proposed gravel mine, subject to state approval. The request for emergency interim zoning submitted by environmental consultant Mike Bader on behalf of the citizen group said the plant “would be noisy, smelly and unsightly, and likely to have adverse effects on water quality, native trout and grizzly bears as well as public health and safety and the Montana Constitutional right to a clean and healthful environment.”  Commissioner Dave Strohmaier said Thursday that the request for information is partly a response to the citizens’ concerns and partly because the commission has its own questions. The county also needs more details on the project to determine if interim zoning is warranted, Commissioner Josh Slotnick said.  “The Blackfoot River is an iconic piece of our landscape that benefits our culture and economy, and we need to be thoughtful about how we move forward,” Slotnick said. “Right now, we have a proposal for something we don’t have any details as to what it is, so until we get some details, we can’t really move forward on any front.”  In its permit application submitted in September, RCI Properties Inc., describes the project as “opencut, sand and gravel operations to include use of a portable crusher and portable hot mix asphalt plant.” The developer’s representative did not immediately respond to a request from Montana Free Press for comment on the project and the commissioners’ letter.  The commissioners requested that the developer identify the specific location where materials will be extracted and describe the size and scale of the operation, outline mitigation efforts, and provide information on anticipated traffic and current or planned community outreach by Dec. 29.  The developer needs the county permit as part of its application to the state Department of Environmental Quality, which will ultimately approve or deny the operation, according to the letter.   The Montana DEQ has not received an opencut mining permit application for the project but held two pre-application meetings with the developer earlier this year, said Madison McGeffers, a public information officer for the agency.  The Blackfoot River Community group that requested emergency zoning said in a Facebook post that the commissioners’ letter is “a meaningful step forward.” The group’s online petition, requesting that the county enact emergency zoning, had more than 3,200 signatures as of Thursday afternoon.  The Blackfoot River Community group is hosting a community meeting to share information about the proposal at 5:30 p.m. Monday, Dec. 8, at the KettleHouse Taproom in Bonner. Missoula health officials warn of measles exposure  Missoula Public Health is warning of potential measles exposure after a person infected with the virus visited Missoula Nov. 22.  The state has recorded 34 measles cases since April, the first confirmed instance of the disease in Montana since 1990. Missoula County has not recorded any measles cases this year. The two most recent cases in Montana were recorded in Gallatin County at the end of November, according to the Montana State Department of Public Health and Human Services.  Measles can remain airborne for up to two hours after an infected person has left. Anyone who visited the following places in Missoula during these times on Nov. 22, a Saturday, should monitor for symptoms:  TJ Maxx from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.  Scheels from 12 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.  Old Chicago from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Symptoms include fever, cough, runny nose, red eyes, white spots in the mouth and a red rash. The rash usually starts on the face and spreads downward. These symptoms typically develop seven to 14 days after exposure but can take up to 21 days to appear. Individuals who may have been exposed on Nov. 22 in Missoula should monitor for symptoms through Dec. 14.  Anyone experiencing symptoms should call their provider ahead of time and make arrangements to be evaluated without putting others at risk of exposure.  The best way to prevent measles is to get vaccinated. Those unable to find their vaccination records should contact the schools they attended, their doctor’s office, the health department where they grew up or their home state’s immunization registries. Health officials encourage people without clear records to get the MMR vaccine.  The Missoula Public Health immunization clinic offers the MMR vaccine on a sliding scale, meaning that no one is turned away due to inability to pay. The clinic at 301 W. Alder St. is open for walk-in appointments on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. or by appointment only on Wednesdays. More information is available online.  Public Notice  Missoula Parks and Recreation is seeking input on plans for a new public park in Midtown. The city is planning a 1.3-acre public park at Ernest Avenue and Schilling Street as part of the Midtown Commons development near the Southgate Mall. The park will be designed to provide a “complete park experience,” and should include nature, play, active recreation and social areas, according to the parks department.  The survey follows a public park design workshop held Nov. 19. Residents are encouraged to review the workshop presentation on the project webpage and take a survey, which is open through Dec. 15. The Midtown Commons development’s initial concept included the public park, single-family and multifamily housing for rent and purchase and commercial development. The city this summer selected Miramonte Companies to purchase and develop the 13.5-acre site, located south and west of Bob Ward’s Sports and Outdoors. The city used $5.9 million in tax increment financing money to purchase the vacant property from two landowners last fall to spur redevelopment in the area.  5 Things to Know in Missoula  The Missoula City Council Wednesday discussed whether to replace the baseball field at the city-owned Ogren Park stadium with natural or artificial turf but held off on voting until next week. Big Sky Professional Baseball, which owns the Missoula PaddleHeads, leases the stadium and wants to install artificial turf to extend the field’s usable season, Matt Ellis, the PaddleHeads president, told the council. The Missoula Redevelopment Agency board in August approved spending $1.6 million in tax increment financing to replace the field. Artificial turf would cost around $2.2 million, and Big Sky Professional Baseball would pay the difference. Ellis said the PaddleHeads want to install a Tarkett Sports artificial turf that would not include PFAs, chemicals that may cause health problems. It would also be fully recyclable, use a system to cool down the field and include a carbon catch system, he said. Donna Gaukler, the city’s former Parks and Recreation director, said while there are some unknowns about costs and environmental impact, turf technology has improved significantly in recent years. Several community members spoke against installing artificial turf because of health, safety and environmental concerns. Others spoke in favor of the artificial turf to create more opportunities for youth sports and for the Paddleheads to support local nonprofits. The council will likely continue the discussion next Wednesday, with a specific time announced when the committee’s schedule is released on Friday.  On Thursday, the Missoula County commissioners approved a resolution supporting an infrastructure plan for the Wye west of Missoula. The commissioners will hold a final vote Jan. 8. The plan is set to be adopted as part of the county’s growth policy, which identifies the Wye as an area of future growth and development because of its proximity to existing infrastructure. However, the area lacks adequate roads, water and sewer systems, parks, public safety facilities and schools to serve the potential residential and commercial development, said Andrew Hagemeier, the county’s director of Community and Economic Development. The plan addresses existing infrastructure deficiencies and outlines improvements needed to accommodate projected development over the next 50 years, with a focus on the next 10 years. The Missoula Consolidated Planning Board recommended the county adopt the plan but suggested the county study the area’s groundwater sooner rather than later, Hagemeier said.  Missoula Public Health this week reported the first influenza-related death in the state for the 2025-2026 season. A public health spokesperson told MTFP they could not disclose the person’s age, although KPAX reported the person who died was a man over the age of 80 with underlying health conditions who was vaccinated for the flu. The state has recorded 331 influenza cases, nine hospitalizations and one death as of Nov. 28, according to the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services. Missoula County has recorded seven reported influenza cases since Oct. 5, according to a press release. Flu symptoms can include a high fever, chills, headaches, exhaustion, a sore throat, cough and body aches. It may take one to four days after being exposed to the virus for symptoms to develop. Missoula Public Health encourages precautions to prevent influenza from spreading, including getting vaccinated, wearing a mask in public when sick, covering coughs, washing hands often and staying home for at least 24 hours after a fever has subsided.  The city of Missoula finalized its acquisition of a 182-acre property along the Clark Fork River that includes its poplar farm used to treat wastewater. The city has leased the property off Mullan Road since 2014 and irrigates the trees with the treated effluent from the nearby wastewater treatment plant, diverting the wastewater from the Clark Fork River, according to a city press release. The acquisition also preserves riparian habitat. The city exchanged 2.6 acres of property on Mullan Road for the property owned by the Clouse family, with “minor” additional costs for surveying, according to the release. The city will also drill a well on the smaller property. The swap will save the city about $30,000 annually in lease payments. The property also includes a segment of the former Milwaukee Railroad, which could be converted to a trail.  Missoula Animal Services is holding an open house and adoption event Sunday to celebrate its newly remodeled building. The event runs from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. at 6700 Butler Creek Rd. Attendees can tour the new space, meet adoptable cats and dogs, enjoy free food, play games and enter for a chance to win pet-related prizes. The $3.5 million remodel included expanding the lobby area with two rooms for adopters, a new animal intake room, dog kennels with indoor and outdoor access, three additional cat rooms, a room for small animals, two dog play yards, a laundry room, a surgery room and new staff workspaces. The shelter is still fundraising for the project, and donations can be made online.  Might be Fun  Holidays on Higgins lights up downtown Missoula in December 2024. Courtesy of Cass Krughoff Various festive activities are scheduled for Saturday as part of theHolidays on Higgins eventin downtown Missoula. Families can take free photos with Santa and Mrs. Claus from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Missoula Public Library. Out West Wagon Rides will offer free horse-drawn carriage rides from noon to 3 p.m. at the corner of East Pine Street by the Missoula Art Museum. Dozens of businesses will host festive family activities, listed online, between 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. Higgins Avenue between Broadway and the XXXXs will feature stationary holiday floats, burn barrels, carolers and the Missoula Makers Collective Market from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. The post County pauses review of proposed gravel mine near Bonner appeared first on Montana Free Press. ...read more read less