Serving Southern Jefferson County in the Great State of Montana
Serving Southern Jefferson County in the Great State of Montana
Sorted by date Results 1021 - 1045 of 1331
If any of you followed the state legislature this past Spring you would have read about proposals to cut state spending and funding for our schools. They did restore millions of dollars in funding for Montana schools that were originally on the chopping block but they did so by depleting a different pool of school payments. School Block Grant funding and Natural Resource payments have been diminished and the burden has been pushed to local taxpayers to make up the difference, and neither the taxpayer or our local school districts have any say....
Officials at the Barrick Golden Sunlight Mine are pleased with the current progress of underground operations at the site. At the Community Transition Advisory Meeting last week, Mine General Manager Dan Banghart reported the production in August was 3,300 ounces, they have already completed a four-day mill run in September -- with an eight-day run scheduled this week. “The underground continues to do quite well,” Banghart said. While the grade of the ore is still not what they would like, Banghart said they are making up for it with ton...
Monday, Sept. 11 4:57 a.m. – animal problem, Paul Gulch Road, Whitehall 7:00 a.m. – animal problem, 206 1st Street West, Whitehall 10:35 a.m. – criminal mischief, Whitetail Road, MM 16, Whitehall 10:54 a.m. – hit & run, Hwy 2 West, Whitehall 12:53 p.m. – property found, Hwy 2 West Whitehall 1:11 p.m. – public safety, 55 Skyline Drive, Whitehall 3:02 p.m. - traffic accident/2 vehicles/non-injury, Legion Avenue, Whitehall 3:23 p.m. – abandoned auto, I-90 westbound, MM 233, Whitehall 3:44 p.m. - suicide attempted adult male, 44 Kountz Road,...
With the first case of influenza confirmed in Jefferson County last week and several others in 5 other Montana counties, it looks like the 2017-18 flu season has begun. Last Friday, the Department of Public Health and Human Services (DPHHS) announced that 14 laboratory-confirmed influenza infections were reported across the state, with 3 of them hospitalized. Ages of the patients ranged from infant to 91 years. Other counties reporting flu were Cascade, Lewis and Clark, Missoula, Flathead, and Yellowstone. This is an abrupt start to the...
Hi Folks, Interesting change of weather this past week. There wasn’t much easing into the change. It went from the 90’s to the 40’s in about three days. This should go a long way toward ending our fire season for this year, especially since we have more rain and snow forecasted for the next few days. At our regular meeting last week we gave final plat approval to the Amended Palmer Minor Subdivision. We approved having our Recreation Department submit a grant request to develop a new website that will highlight all of the recreation oppor...
The FAA and Montana Highway Patrol are investigating a plane accident Thursday afternoon in Whitehall. According to Jefferson County Sheriff Craig Doolittle, a plane was apparently taxiing on the runway when it got away from the pilot and ran into a house at 36 S. Centurion Way. Doolittle stated no injuries were reported. Look for more information in the September 27 issue of the Whitehall Ledger....
The Whitehall Town Council is looking for proposals on what to do with the Ambulance Barn located at 207 West Legion. At their regular meeting Monday night, the Council approved to advertise requests for proposals on the space that was most recently used by the Community Beacon of Hope Inc. Ambulance Service. Town Attorney Ed Guza and Deputy Town Attorney Elizabeth Musick will draft the advertisement to meet legal specifications. Mayor Dale Davis said people want to know what they are going to do with the building, and asked permission to...
Monday, Sept. 4 2:35 a.m. – agency assist, 700 Cottonwood Road, Cardwell 11:05 a.m. - traffic/roads parking, Whitetail Road, Whitehall 11:20 a.m. – traffic stop, Whitetail Road, MM 8, Whitehall 4:03 p.m. – traffic stop, Hwy 359, Cardwell 4:27 p.m. – traffic stop, 1455 Hwy 2 East, Cardwell 4:49 p.m. – traffic/reckless, I-90 eastbound, MM 259, Whitehall 6:13 p.m. - suspicious/person/vehicle/circumstance, Robbins Lane, Whitehall 8:37 p.m. – traffic stop, Hwy 69, MM 15, Cardwell 9:09 p.m. - public safety-fire/smoke, I-90 westbound, MM 263, Cardwe...
In an effort to raise money to upgrade their building at 501 N. Whitehall St., the Whitehall Chamber of Commerce is conducting a Gun Raffle. The prize is a Precision Guns Custom Rifle Combo Package, a $4,200 value. The package includes a rifle up to 300 Ultra Mag (winners choice), scope, load development, and hunting turrets. Chamber Treasurer Jill Dove said they are trying to do their part to beautify Whitehall and provide for a better tourist experience. Dove said there are plans for a pavilion with a picnic table and brochure holders so...
The annual Whitehall Fall Gun, Knight and Antique show is just a few days away. The popular annual event is scheduled to take place September 8 to 10 at the Whitehall Community Center located at 11 N. Division St. The show is sponsored the Whitehall VFW and American Legion, and the Weapons Collectors Society of America. The event will take place September 8 from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m., September 9 from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., and September 10 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Organizer Tom Harrington told the Ledger earlier this year what makes the Whitehall show...
Local businesses were honored last Wednesday night in Whitehall at the Jefferson Local Development Corporation annual dinner and awards. JLDC Co-Manager Tom Harrington addressed the crowd at the conclusion of the dinner, and thanked current members for their support. He said after the loss of 250 jobs at the MDC in Boulder, a big priority for JLDC in the past year has been in Boulder. He discussed the creation of the Boulder Transition Advisory Committee, adding the future is bright for the...
The Conrow Fire that started August 24 near Whitehall is nearly 100 percent contained. The latest update September 5 from the United States Forest Service showed the fire was 97 percent contained. The fire transitioned to a local Type IV Incident Command September 3. Sunday was the last shift for the Nevada Type 3 Incident Management team, who had been running operations. As of Tuesday afternoon, there were 12 personnel on the fire. The number peaked last week at 160. The total acreage of the fire is 2,741. The fire caused by lighting is seven...
Hi Folks, I hope everyone had a great Labor Day. At our regular meeting last week we held a series of four Public Hearings. The first Hearing was for the use of Title III funds that we have received over several years from Secure Rural School’s money. Since Congress has not reauthorized that payment the program is ending and we need to obligate the funds we have. The use of the money is very limited. We are proposing to use some of it to purchase a Curtain Burner, which would allow us to burn woody waste at our transfer sites without the d...
Lighting late last Thursday night started a wildfire seven miles northeast of Whitehall. As of Wednesday morning at 11 a .m., the Conrow Fire was reported at 2,727 acres and the containment was at 65 percent. The estimated containment date is Wednesday, September 6. United States Forest Service District Ranger Dave Sabo said on Tuesday there has not been a size increase for the fire in two days. The fire started on private land in Jefferson County within the Whitehall Fire District and has...
Local law enforcement, residents, as well as town and county officials came together last Wednesday night at a special town meeting in Whitehall. A majority of the meeting was a public forum to allow residents to express their concerns and ask questions to law enforcement, including Jefferson County Sheriff Craig Doolittle. Many in the audience spoke about problems associated with meth use. Curtis Smith said that while living in Arkansas and now Whitehall, he has seen a lot of meth problems and if they can get rid of the drug, they could get...
Monday, Aug. 21 7:11 a.m. – alarms, 12 East Legion Avenue, Whitehall 10:51 a.m. – traffic/ reckless, I-90 eastbound, MM 243, Whitehall 11:07 a.m. - suspicious/person/vehicle/circumstance, 2 North Whitehall Street, Whitehall 11:28 a.m. - care for sick/injured, 37 Tatanka Trail, Whitehall 2:54 p.m. - suspicious/person/vehicle/circumstance, Delmoe Lake Road, MM 6, Whitehall 3:24 p.m. - public safety-fire/smoke, I-90 westbound, MM 236, Whitehall 5:58 p.m. – traffic/ reckless, I-90 eastbound, MM 263, Cardwell 9:33 p.m. – traffic stop, North Whiteha...
Area residents came together last week to show support for local law enforcement at a "Back the Blue" event at Legion Park in Downtown Whitehall. Among those in attendance at the Wednesday event was Charles Shank, who discussed his respect for and what the local law enforcement means to him. He said some laws really need to be enforced because certain elements of society don't seem to care about others. Whitehall resident Jeannie Reinschmidt said she left the event very happy and pleased with...
Hi Folks, At our meeting on the 22nd, someone said we had been pretty fortunate in Jefferson County that we hadn’t had any big fires since they were all around us and it was so dry. Thursday we got hit twice. The first fire reported was in the North end near Holmes Gulch. It was just above the base where the air tankers are stationed. It was also very close to Helena, and when it started it was headed toward Helena, so it got a lot of attention very fast. It ended up in the bottom or Holmes Gulch and was contained there within a couple of d...
Editor's Note: This article will also be published in the August 30 edition of the Whitehall Ledger. Slowly dusk fell over the land and the temperature took a noticeable downward turn. To add a bit more intrigue, a slight breeze began to blow. As one, the heads of the eclipse viewers turned to the sky with their 'in' glasses or a box or a welder's mask adorning those heads. It had been a glorious morning wending slowly through the Jefferson Canyon spotting deer crossing the river and a few...
A “Back the Blue” event is scheduled for Wednesday (August 23) evening at 6 p.m. The gathering to support local law enforcement is scheduled for 6 p.m. at the Barrick Golden Sunlight Mine Pavilion....
The Town of Whitehall is hosting a special public meeting Wednesday, August 23 with Jefferson County Sheriff Craig Doolittle. The meeting will take place at 7 p.m. at Town Hall. The Whitehall Town Council voted last week to approve the meeting after local residents expressed concern about crime. Town Attorney Ed Guza said to Council last week he would also like the meeting set up with Doolittle to update their current contract. Look for a complete recap of tonight’s meeting online later this week at www.whitehallledger.com....
Hi Folks, At last week’s regular meeting, we signed a contract with the First Boulder Valley Bank for them to provide banking services to the County. We approved Resolution 25-2017 which provides for a loan of about $300,000 from the Metal Mines Account to the South Tax Increment Financing District to cover some infrastructure needs. We also approved Resolution 26-2017 which provides a loan of about $80,000 to the North TIF District for infrastructure needs. We signed MOU’s with the Montana Wool Growers and the Montana Stock Growers for pre...
Monday, Aug. 14 1:16 a.m. – traffic stop, Hwy 2 East, Three Forks 4:11 a.m. - suspicious/person/vehicle/circumstance, Hwy 2 East, Three Forks 8:57 a.m. - keeping the peace, 38 Curlew Lane, Whitehall 9:43 a.m. – stranded motorist, Hwy 69, MM 20, Cardwell 10:04 a.m. – stranded motorist, Hwy 2 East, Cardwell 10:33 a.m. –care for sick/injured, Hwy 2 East, Three Forks 10:58 a.m. - burglary -forcible (residence), 108 West 3rd Street #2, Whitehall 12:14 p.m. – agency assist, Trail 14, Whitehall 12:49 p.m. – VIN inspection, 43 Curlew Lane, Whitehall 1...
There was recently some good news for the Whitehall Head Start Program. According to Bob Mullen, Jefferson County Commissioner, the Rocky Mountain Development Council Board of Directors and the Head Start Policy Council have voted unanimously to continue the Whitehall Head Start Program for the upcoming school year. Following concerns about filling a teacher position (upon the retirement of Elaine Henningsen) and about enrollment of a sufficient number of students, Mullen reports that “all concerns of the Board and Policy Council have been m...
At last week’s Community Transition Advisory Committee Meeting, Golden Sunlight Mine Manager Dan Banghart reported the production at the mine during July was 2,400 ounces. Banghart added from August 1 to 3 about 1,000 ounces were recovered. Banghart told committee members that the mill performed well, and while underground tonnage exceeded plans, they are still seeing lower grades than budgeted. Banghart reported there were 7,600 tons of third party ore from four suppliers. He said the number would be down to two in August. There are c...
