LATEST NEWS

A Dayton man is being held in the Kalispell jail following a Wednesday afternoon shooting.

Sep. 28—A confrontation over the alleged abduction of a dog ended with the arrest of a Kalispell woman on multiple felony charges earlier this month. Ashley Nicole Smith, 37, faces felony counts of criminal mischief and criminal possession of dangerous drugs after allegedly ramming her ex-boyfriend's vehicle and threatening him with a gun on Kalispell's west side on Sept. 23. Held at the county jail with bail set at $20,000, Smith is expected to appear before Judge Dan Wilson in Flathead County District Court for her arraignment on Oct. 5.

MISSOULA — Roger Ossie Nickerson, a 40-year-old resident of Marion, Montana, has been sentenced to 10 years and one month in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for his involvement in distributing fentanyl pills and methamphetamine in Flathead County. The sentencing was announced by U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich, with U.S. District Judge Dana L. Christensen presiding over the case.

The police calls section is presented for entertainment purposes and does not reflect the nature or the volume of the calls received by local law enforcement. Sept. 6 A driver was seen speeding at 40 mph through a parking lot on Highway 40. A reckless driver was seen going around 85 mph and flying past lines of cars on Voerman Road. A man responsible for accidentally dialing 911 said his phone was broken and he was going to do a hard reset on it. A newspaper delivery boy was being followed while on his route at about 4 a.m. The person following the paper boy...

More than a century ago, the massive wildfires of 1910 devasted millions of forested acres across the West, prompting the U.S. Forest Service to prioritize wildfire detection and launch its fire lookout program. By the 1940s, the Civilian Conservation Corps constructed more than 5,000 towers across the country. To be...

Plans emerged Monday for a large mixed-use development at the south gateway to Whitefish that would include more than 200 apartment units. The approximately 11-acre parcel on the southeast corner of the U.S. 93 and Montana 40 intersection currently is under Flathead County jurisdiction, but Whitefish City Council will consider an option to annex the property at its next regular meeting Oct. 2. The city growth policy calls for Business Transitional District zoning at the high-traffic intersection. Lead developer Alberto Valner said the “Alpine 93/40” project will help alleviate some of Whitefish’s housing needs with the addition of 210 units, including 21 deed-restricted...

MISSOULA — Levi Janacaro had a unique chance to share his faith on a September morning. The Montana senior got to lead a chapel service prior to the Grizzlies’ game against Ferris State. He researched that week’s section of the Apostles’ Creed and shared what he as able to gather and interpret with those in attendance.

The Whitefish City Council showed interest in a program aimed at providing rental assistance to residents of Whitefish. Daniel Sidder, executive director of Housing Whitefish, in partnership with the Whitefish Chamber of Commerce and the Whitefish Housing Authority, presented an overview of the Whitefish Workforce Assistance Fund to the council at a recent work session. Sidder asked the city for its input and for $200,000 to help get the pilot project off the ground, as well as a commitment for funds in the subsequent two years. The hope is to launch the program early in 2024. The council had a positive reaction...

A northwest Montana man facing drug trafficking charges after a traffic stop last year was recently sentenced. Barry Rosenlund, 66, of Kalispell and formerly of Libby, received a six-year suspended sentence. He was ordered to get a chemical dependency evaluation and given credit for serving 131 days in the county jail. Rosenlund initially pleaded not guilty to one felony count of criminal possession of dangerous drugs with the intent to distribute on April 17 in Lincoln County District Court. But on Aug. 7, Rosenlund, appearing with his attorney Sean Hinchey, changed his plea. Rosenlund apologized when Judge Matt Cuffe asked him if he...

John "Magic John Michaels" Michael Fleming, 62, died Sept. 20, 2023 in Kalispell. Services will be held privately at the convenience of the family. Memorial date to be determined. To send online condolences, visit www.austinfh.com.

Flathead County residents will need permits for any open burning on their land beginning on October 1.

KALISPELL — Sam Tudor has resigned as the Kalispell Flathead girls basketball coach, activities director Bryce Wilson announced Wednesday. Tudor coached the Bravettes for three seasons and led the team to an appearance in the Class AA state championship game last season. Flathead won the Western AA divisional championship to earn a No. 1 seed for the state tournament, where the Bravettes would eventually fall to Billings West in the championship game.

After scoring 90 points in their past two games, the Polson Pirates dropped a Western A football contest 42-0 to Columbia Falls on Friday, Sept. 22. The Wildcats improved to 3-2 and had 368 yards of total offense. In the first quarter, a 16-yard touchdown pass and a 21-yard scoring run by Columbia Falls gave the Wildcats a 14-0 lead. They added a 21-yard touchdown pass and a five-yard run for a 28-0 halftime lead. Columbia Falls had another touchdown pass and run in the third quarter to round out their scoring. Polson fell to 2-3 on the year after having won...

KALISPELL, Mont. — One man was arrested after a standoff in Kalispell on Saturday. Trevor Berggren, 28, was arrested and is being held at the Flathead County Detention Center on charges of Strangulation of a Partner or Family Member and Assault with a Weapon, both felony charges. The female...

Like most Montana communities, Whitefish has struggled for decades to adequately maintain and improve critical infrastructure in our community including our streets, parks and water and sewer utilities. We are fortunate that our forefathers and many community leaders had the vision in 1996 to realize the need for a local option sales tax … the Resort Tax.

The Dillon Beavers handled the Whitefish Bulldogs 45-7 Friday at Vigilante Field in Dillon. Whitefish came in off an upset over Columbia Falls and expectations were that the Whitefish change in quarterback and philosophy to a five wide passing game would present a challenge. Dillon pounded the Bulldogs with six first-half touchdowns.

Trouble at traffic lights, bad intersections and speed limits were front and center at last week’s city council meeting as Montana Department of Transportation District 1 Administrator Bob Vosen met with the Columbia Falls city council. Vosen touched on a variety of concerns by councilmembers. He was accompanied by MDT construction engineer John Schmidt. Vosen told council that problem intersections like Highway 206 and Highway 2, Highway 2 and the Blue Moon and city street intersections at 4th Avenue, Sixth Avenue and Meadow Lake Boulevard were being analyzed for improvements. Council has long sought dedicated left-hand turn lane signals at those intersections,...

The Flathead Land Trust now owns and manages the land, allowing public access for generations to come.

Featuring 10 short and feature-length films the 2023 International Fly Fishing Film Festival makes a stop in Whitefish on Sept. 30. The Whitefish event will be at the Whitefish Performing Arts Center, 127 Spokane Avenue, at 7 p.m. Doors open at 6 p.m. Tickets are priced at $15 in advance and can be purchased online at https://www.flyfilmfest.com/whitefishmt/. Total running time of the film is two hours. This event is hosted by Lakestream Fly Shop. Among the films in the festival are “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Damsel,” with oversized tiger trout, a prolific damsel fly hatch, and an obscure mountain lake; “Of the Sea,”...

In this article, we're exploring two popular pizza joints in Whitefish. Have you had the chance to try either of them yet? If yes, we'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments section below!