Missoula Current
Viewpoint: City Council must provide pathways out of homelessness
Daniel Carlino writes, "Survival activities such as camping, sleeping, or living in a vehicle are often unavoidable for people experiencing homelessness. We must provide safe places where people without access to shelter can go."
Viewpoint: No matter side, authorized camp sites the answer
Kristen Jordan writes, "The City of Missoula has done an incredible job putting permanently affordable housing online. It has also done an incredible job creating congregant shelter space for our unhoused neighbors. However, it isn’t enough, unfortunately."
County rolls back building permit requirement for some structures
Nearly 10 years after adopting a building code program, Missoula County on Tuesday rolled back some of the regulations it included by exempting certain structures from needing a building permit on certain properties.
Enviro group prepares to sue state over grizzly translocation
An environmental group is preparing to sue the state of Montana and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service over the state’s plan to truck grizzly bears between the Northern Continental Divide and Greater Yellowstone ecosystems.
Viewpoint: New BLM rule balances energy, conservation
Rob Thomas writes, "The BLM's oil and gas rule reflects the public's desire for a balanced approach to public lands management – one that prioritizes both economic opportunity and conserves our outdoor heritage."
Missoula County signs new healthcare contract for local, state inmates
Missoula County inked a new contract with a medical firm to provide services to inmates held at the Missoula County Detention Facility, including state inmates whose daily costs exceed what the state reimburses.
GOP legislators question PSC petition to consider climate costs
A legislative hearing on a citizens’ petition to get the Public Service Commission to consider the social costs of climate change provided an indication of the uphill battle any future rule might face.
Governor, legislators send letter opposing old-growth protection
A Legislative committee is backing the Gianforte administration in its opposition to a proposed U.S. Forest Service amendment that could make small changes to preserve old-growth forests.
Montana Viewpoint: You go to your church, I’ll go to mine
Jim Elliott writes, "They may have escaped intolerance directed at their own beliefs, but they managed to develop a different type of religious intolerance of their own."
MEP hears business concerns, from rising rent to parking
From a tight labor pool to rising rents, businesses across the downtown district and other areas of Missoula are facing unique challenges, all of which have gained the attention of the Missoula Economic Partnership.