Missoula County Government: Missoula County Weekly: July 5-9

Press release from the Missoula County Government:

07/05/2021 7:00 AM

As summer heats up, we expect many residents and visitors alike to recreate on the Clark Fork, Blackfoot and Bitterroot rivers. The Missoula County commissioners filmed to inform the public on the new River Ambassadors program. This program is a partnership between the County, City of Missoula, the Clark Fork Coalition and Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks to help educate users on how to safely and responsibly recreate on the river. You can watch the video online at missoula.co/tipofthespear, where you can also view other videos in the "Tip of the Spear" series, in which the commissioners discuss topics of public interest. If you have a topic you'd like the commissioners to discuss in the video series, they can email it to bcc@missoulacounty.us.

Members of the Seeley-Swan Search and Rescue members received the National Daughters of American Revolution Distinguished Citizen Medal on June 15. The medal is presented to individuals or groups that exemplify honor, service, courage, leadership and patriotism.

Those receiving certificates and medals for their Distinguished Service to the Community from the National Society of the American Revolution Bitterroot Chapter include Leland Barlett, Timothy Hoag, Joseph Miller, Jodie Miller, Jonathan Haufler, Kalvin Kovatch, John Anders, Kenneth Brochu, Patrick Caffery, Gerald Connell, Shawn Ellinghouse, Ryan Hall, Kyle Huestis, Daniel Johnson, Kristy Pohlman, Mary Strumpfer, Daniel Woods, Auguste Lockwood, Kelly Darrow, Mathiew Pittman, Johnathon Baker, David Wellenburn, Sgt. Bob Parcell, Deputy Ryan Dunster and Deputy Heath Hanson. 

“The Daughters of American Revolution Distinguished Citizen Medal is an honor that exemplifies the tireless dedication of the men and women who volunteer their time during an emergency and participate in training throughout the year," said Missoula County Sheriff T.J. McDermott. "Our Search and Rescue members are volunteers who care deeply for their community."

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Following the Fourth of July each year, Missoula County typically fields numerous inquiries from residents about enacting a countywide fireworks ban. Unlike the City, which is a municipality with self-governing powers, Missoula County is a general powers government, and certain conditions must be in place before commissioners can impose fire restrictions on private property.

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The Missoula County Elections Office has many processes in place to ensure the integrity of all elections. We'll walk through those processes in this series, and constituents are always welcome to visit the Elections Center for an in-person tour. 

First, the ballot is tracked by the source in which it was received, whether that be mail, in-person, at a drop-off location, etc. And then it is bundled into a group of 25 for processing. 

Then, the outer mailing envelope (also called the “affirmation envelope”) is opened, and the unique barcode is scanned, adding the ballot into the Secretary of State's database. 

This is called the “receipting process.” Note that the blue secrecy envelope is not removed from the affirmation envelope or opened at this time. 

Watch the slideshow below, and visit missoula.co/electionintegrity for more info on how your ballot is handled and processed. 

Kim Adamo, Safety and Training Coordinator, Risk and Benefits 

“Since graduating with my bachelor’s degree in occupational safety and health in 2016, the greatest gift was landing this job in the place I call home. I feel so lucky to work for and give back to the community I grew up in. 

My goal each day is getting Missoula County employees home the same way they came to work. I am responsible for developing, maintaining and enforcing our county-wide safety program and ensuring compliance with state and federal safety regulations. Some of my essential job functions include updating policies, training employees, performing safety inspections and conducting incident investigations to prevent re-occurrence.  

Most of my work the last 16 months has been focused on collaborating with departments to implement appropriate COVID-19 safety measures to prevent infection among workers. One of my favorite things about this job has been getting to work with so many different people. There are nearly 30 departments within Missoula County, many of which I have worked with.  

I work safe every day so I can continue adventuring the outdoors with my husband and dog (who is occasionally my co-worker). Why do you work safe?” 

Missoula County Facilities solicits bids for sidewalk repair on Expressway Boulevard. A mandatory pre-bid conference will be conducted at 1 p.m. July 8 at the corner of Expressway Blvd. and Canyon Creek Blvd. Bidders are encouraged to use this opportunity to ask clarifying questions, obtain a better understanding of the project, or to notify the county of any ambiguities, inconsistencies or errors discovered upon examination. 

Missoula City-County Health Department seeks proposals for an Electronic Health Record system that will meet the evolving needs of the Health Services Division, including Immunization Clinic Services, Home Visiting Services and Nutrition Service's Diabetes Prevention Program. 

Read the full request for proposals

Make an appointment at covid19.missoula.co, and share your experience on social media with the hashtags #endthepandemic, #vaccinatethe406 and #gotmyshot406. 

Stay up to date with Missoula County's COVID-19 vaccine distribution success! Visit covid19.missoula.co/vaccine-information and click on the Vaccination Distribution Map and Dashboard blue button. The data is updated every Monday. If you would like to track data across Montana, visit the Montana Response page. 

Missoula to receive $2.3M in payment for federal lands; $36M across Montana 
Missoula County extends window for development delayed by infrastructure work 
Missoula County fire danger being hiked to “high” 
Missoula medical experts say recognize signs of heat related illnesses 
Missoula County signs off on pursuit of federal building; downtown properties to open up 

Offices are closed in observance of Independence Day Monday, July 5, and a quorum of the commissioners will not be present for the majority of the week. No regularly scheduled department, administrative or public meetings are scheduled for this week. 

Thursday, July 8, noon: Operation Shelter Public Meeting

To join commissioner department, administrative and public meetings via Microsoft Teams and view the agendas, please visit the Missoula County Commissioners’ Meeting Minutes and Agenda Portal. Please note that agendas for department and administrative meetings are published two business days before the meeting, and public meeting agendas are published the Friday before the meeting. Administrative and public meeting video recordings are available on the Missoula County YouTube page after the meeting, and MCAT plays the public meetings live on their Spectrum Channel 190. Email bcc@missoulacounty.us or leave a voicemail at 406-258-4877 if you have any questions or comments on an upcoming meeting.  

This press release was produced by the Missoula County Government. The views expressed here are the author’s own.