Montana

Kalispell Planning Commission to host hearing on city's future participation plan

Published

2 years ago

February 13, 2024

Kalispell Planning Commission to host hearing on city's future participation plan

Kalispell Planning Commission will solicit input Tuesday on a forthcoming public participation plan, which will change how residents engage with the city on developments and establish a long-term game plan for city growth.

The new plan is mandated by Senate Bill 382, also known as the Montana Land Use Planning Act, signed into law by Gov. Greg Gianforte in May 2023. Part of a package of bills aimed at addressing the state’s housing crunch, SB 382 was designed to front-load public comment for undeveloped land and then fast-track developments as an administrative process for periods of five years.

The Planning Commission meets the second Tuesday of every month at 6 p.m. at City Hall, 201 First Ave. E. Residents can attend in person or online at www.kalispell.com/480/Council-Meeting-Agendas-Videos.

City documents describe the goal of the proposed plan as creating a “clear and accessible public process” ensuring input is sought and considered “from a broad range of participants.”

As for practical application, the proposal calls for alerting the public to land use plan changes via notices published in newspapers, posts on the city website, social media updates and press releases, among other avenues. City staff would then organize meetings with community groups and government boards; disseminate surveys and comment forms; host charrettes and public hearings; and attend public events, among other outreach efforts.

The participation plan also warns that public input regarding site-specific projects will be limited under the new, state-mandated system.

“The changes will front-load public input, with limited public involvement during land use permit and application reviews, including subdivisions,” the proposal reads.

The Montana Land Use Planning Act applies to cities with more than 5,000 residents located in counties with a population exceeding 70,000. Eligible municipalities must comply with the new governance structure by May 2026, pending litigation by groups such as Montanans Against Irresponsible Densification.

That organization, which boasts members in the Flathead Valley, has argued that the law intrudes on municipal governance, violates the Montana Constitution’s right of participation and is bound to have disproportionate effects on neighborhoods.

After the hearing, the commission is expected to forward its recommendation to Kalispell City Council. City staff are recommending the commission endorse the proposal.

THE COMMISSION will also hear public comments on potential environmental impact of future upgrades and repairs on the Depot Park building.

The hearing comes as part of the city’s effort to secure a $500,000 Montana Historic Preservation Grant for the undertaking, which would see the building receive a new roof with historically accurate eaves, gutters and paint, according to city documents.

The city-owned structure has undergone interior renovations in recent months in anticipation of the municipality’s Parks and Recreation Department moving into the space. The agency’s former home is expected to subsequently be converted into an evidence facility for the Kalispell Police Department.

Lastly, the Scoreboard Sports Bar, TTC Investments and Mitch Tormohlen have submitted a request for annexation of a parking lot and abandoned alley right of way along 51, 55, and 75 Woodland Park Drive, which will serve as the subject of a public hearing. The applicants are asking that the land be zoned B-1, neighborhood business.

The 17,400-square-foot space is being eyed as the site of a future apartment complex, according to city documents.

City staff is recommending the commission recommend the annexation and zoning to Council following the public hearing.

Reporter Carl Foster can be reached at 758-4407 or cfoster@dailyinterlake.com.

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Montana

Apparent AI Glitch in Filing by Montana Public Defender, Recent Congressional Candidate

Published

9 hours ago

March 2, 2026

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Apparent AI Glitch in Filing by Montana Public Defender, Recent Congressional Candidate

Everyone makes mistakes, even experienced professionals; a good reminder for the rest of us to learn from those mistakes. The motion in State v. Stroup starts off well in its initial pages (no case law hallucinations), but is then followed by several pages of two other motions, which I don’t think the lawyer was planning to file, and which appear to have been AI-generated: It begins with the “Below is concise motion language you can drop into …” language quoted above.

Griffen Smith (Missoulian) reported on the story, and included the prosecutor’s motion to strike that filing, on the grounds that it violates a local rule (3(G)) requiring disclosure of the use of generative AI:

The document does not include a generative artificial intelligence disclosure as required. However, page 7 begins as follows: “Below is concise motion language you can drop into a ‘Motion to Admit Mental-Disease Evidence and for Related Instructions’ keyed to 45-6-204, 45-6-201, and 4614-102. Adjust headings/captions to your local practice.” Page 10 states “Below is a full motion you can paste into your pleading, then adjust names, dates, and styles to fit local practice.” These pages also include several apparent hyperlinks to “ppl-ai-file-upload.s3.amazonaws,” “ppl-ai-fileupload.s3.amazonaws+1,” and others. The document includes what appears to be an attempt at a second case caption on page 12. It is not plausible on its face that any source other than generative AI would have created such language for a filed version of a brief….

There’s more in that filing, but here’s one passage:

While generative AI can be a useful tool for some purposes and may have greater application in the future, when used improperly, and without meaningful review, it can ultimately damage both the perception and the reality of the profession. One assumes that Mr. Stroup has had, or will at some point have, an opportunity to review the filing made on his behalf. What impression could a review of pgs. 12-19 leave upon a defendant who struggles with paranoia and delusional thinking? While AI could theoretically one day become a replacement for portions of staff of experienced attorneys, it is readily apparent that this day has not yet arrived.

The Missoulan article includes this response:

In a Wednesday interview, Office of Public Defender Division Administrator Brian Smith told the Missoulian the AI-generated language was inadvertently included in an unrelated filing. And he criticized the county attorney’s office for filing a “four-page diatribe about the dangers of AI” instead of working with the defense to correct her mistake.
“That’s not helping the client or the case,” Smith said, “and all you are doing is trying to throw a professional colleague under the bus.”

As I mentioned, the lawyer involved seems quite experienced, and ran for the Montana Public Service Commission in 2020 (getting nearly 48% of the vote) and for the House of Representatives in Montana’s first district in 2022 (getting over 46% of the vote) and in 2024 (getting over 44%). “Его пример другим наука,” Pushkin wrote in Eugene Onegin—”May his example profit others,” in the Falen translation.

Thanks to Matthew Monforton for the pointer.

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Montana

Your guide to local sports events, plus what’s on TV

Published

21 hours ago

March 2, 2026

Press Room

Your guide to local sports events, plus what’s on TV

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Montana

Montana Department of Agriculture focusing on innovation in 2026

Published

1 day ago

March 1, 2026

Press Room

Montana Department of Agriculture focusing on innovation in 2026

HELENA — You probably have goals and plans for 2026—the Montana Department of Agriculture does too.

“We’re really focusing on innovative agricultural practices,” Montana Department of Agriculture director Jillien Streit said.

It’s no secret that agriculture—farming and ranching—is not easy. There are long days, planning, monitoring crops and livestock, and other challenges beyond farmers’ and ranchers’ control.

(WATCH: Montana Department of Agriculture focusing on innovation in 2026)

Montana Department of Agriculture focusing on innovation in 2026

“We have very low commodity prices across the board,” Streit said. “We still have very high input prices across the board, and we have really high prices when it comes to our equipment, and so, it’s a really tough year.”

But innovation, including new practices, partnerships and technology use, can help navigate some of those challenges.

“We can’t make more time and we can’t make more land, so we need to start putting together innovative practices that help us maximize what our time and land can do,” Streit said.

Practices range from using technology like autonomous tractors and virtual fencing—allowing rangers to contain and move cattle right from their phones—to regenerative farming and ranching.

“It is bringing cattle back into farming operations to be able to work with cover cropping practices to invigorate the soil for new soil health benefits,” Streit said.

The Montana Department of Agriculture is working to help producers learn, share, and collaborate on new ideas to work in their operations.

The department will share stories of practices that work from farms and ranches across the state. Also, within the next year or so, Streit said the department is hoping to roll out technology to help producers collaborate.

“(It’s) providing a communication platform where people can get together and really help each other out by utilizing each other’s assets,” she said.

While not easy, agriculture is still one of Montana’s largest industries, and Streit said innovating and sharing ideas across the state can keep it going long into the future.

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