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Flathead County commissioners take bids under advisement, approve appointments, HR changes and land-use measures
Summary
The Flathead County Board of Commissioners on Jan. 14 voted to take bids for the Blankenship Bridge erosion-control project under advisement, authorized a call for bids for gravel crushing, confirmed multiple advisory-board appointments, approved HR changes including a new short-term interpreter position, and approved a zoning map amendment and a final plat.
The Flathead County Board of Commissioners on Jan. 14 voted on a range of routine and land-use items: they took construction bids for the Blankenship Bridge erosion-control project under advisement, authorized publishing a call for bids for bush pit gravel crushing, confirmed multiple board and advisory appointments, approved human-resources transmittals including elimination of a part-time window-clerk position and creation of a short-term interpreter role, signed an employment agreement for a new IT director, and approved both a zoning map amendment for a Meadowlark Drive property and the final plat and security agreement for the MacGregor Ridge subdivision.
Votes at a glance:
Blankenship Bridge erosion-control project (open bids received): commissioners opened and read bids from several contractors and then moved to take the bids under advisement. No contract award was made at the meeting; motion carried.
Authorization to publish call for bids — Bush Pit gravel crushing: the commissioners approved authorization to publish a call for bids for gravel crushing (budgeted at $500,000 for the Road Department) and the motion carried.
Board and advisory appointments: the board moved to appoint multiple applicants to county advisory bodies. Appointments approved included Cassidy Kipp (Agency on Aging Advisory Council, term through 12/31/2026); Steven Barrett (Bridger/Bridal Advisory Committee unexpired term through 12/31/2026); Brenda Miller and Carty Chmieluski (Fair Commission, terms through 12/31/2027); David Ingram (Flathead City-County Opioid Abatement Trust Board, at-large seat); Chad Betweidt (Kalispell Police Department representative, Flathead Emergency Communications Center Operations Board, term through 12/31/2026); Abigail Miller (EMS representative, Flathead Emergency Communications Center Operations Board, term through 12/31/2026); Katie Newman, Colton Little and Chris Martin to three of five Transportation Advisory Committee terms through 12/31/2027; and Cardi Chmieliewski to a Technical Advisory Committee term through 12/31/2026. Several advertised seats received no eligible applicants and remain vacant.
Human-resources transmittals and personnel actions: the commission approved an HR transmittal to eliminate a part-time window-clerk position in justice court and approved creation of a short-term interpreter position to allow the county to place individuals on payroll when they lack a vendor business setup (the board discussed Spanish and Russian interpreter needs). The board also approved the monthly personnel actions list that reported 13 new hires and 7 terminations for December and a reduction in total vacant positions from 50 to 43.
Employment agreement: the commissioners approved an employment agreement for Justin Miller as the new information-technology director, with a two-year term beginning Jan. 21.
Surplus property and donations: the board declared a 2004 GMC Yukon used by the records-preservation department as surplus and accepted a $2,000 donation to the animal shelter from Chris Walker.
Land-use actions: the board held a public hearing and approved a zoning map amendment for a property at 22 Meadowlark Drive near Kalispell, changing the lot from R-3 (single-family) to R-4 (two-family) and adopting findings of fact and a resolution to that effect. The board also approved a final plat for the MacGregor Ridge Subdivision (13 lots) and accepted a subdivision-improvement assurance (SIA) of $400,000 (125% of remaining improvement costs) as security.
Family transfer / COS review: the board completed a certificate-of-survey (COS) review for a proposed family transfer (Scales) and moved the item as requested by staff; the owner, Trey Scales, testified he plans to build a house on the parcel and said he does not intend to sell the land.
Many motions were routine and passed by voice vote with "Aye" recorded and no roll-call tallies recorded in the minutes. Where applicants or staff provided reports, planning and HR staff told commissioners the applications or transmittals met submittal requirements or conditions of approval.
No county action at the Jan. 14 meeting changed county code or adopted new county policy; several items (bids, surplus disposition, board vacancies) remain in process pending subsequent administrative steps.
