Montana
Surprisingly, Montana Won't See This Wanted Retailer in 2024
There has been a lot of chatter about Montana getting a location of this famous, much loved furniture retailer. However, it appears that we’re NOT getting a location in Montana or anywhere near us, anytime soon.
We’re talking about the world’s largest furniture retailer, as of 2008. Their blue and yellow buildings can be found all over the planet – but NONE are located in Montana or anywhere surrounding us. (As of this writing, there are no locations in Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, North Dakota, or South Dakota.)
The closest IKEA location to Montana is in Draper, Utah. (Draper is south of Salt Lake City, about halfway to Provo, Utah.) There is also an IKEA location in Centennial, Colorado which is just south of Denver.
Montanans are quite keen on getting our own IKEA location, but unfortunately that isn’t going to happen in the near future. Yes, IKEA is opening more showrooms in the United States, but their list of ‘coming soon’ stores still does not include Montana OR any of our neighbor states.
MORE: Theses Are The Most Popular Restaurants In Montana
IKEA’s layout is famously enticing – with full room settings that inspire customers to purchase entire room sets. Even though many folks simply walk out with only a bookcase to put together at home, IKEA is incredibly good at selling a particular style and furniture ‘vibe’.
IKEA store location 2024 – IKEA
If you’ve shopped at an IKEA, you know that each of their products has a name – making it easier to remember than some random code number. That naming of items is done on purpose, and has an interesting reason behind it:
“(IKEA) Company founder Kamprad was dyslexic, finding that naming the furniture with proper names and words, rather than a long product code, made the products easier to identify and remember.” (wikipedia.com)
So who is getting a new IKEA location? In January of 2024, IKEA announced where they’d open four new locations in the United States. (These new locations are being called “new format” stores.)
“In 2024, IKEA U.S. is excited to welcome customers at new Plan & order points with Pick-up in Austin, Texas, the Atlanta Metropolitan area, two locations in the greater Los Angeles market and more to come.” (IKEA.com)
With a shred of luck, the ‘Montana area’ can hope that the ‘more-to-come’ part might include a nearby location in the future. The impeccable design of IKEA and their occasionally frustrating assembly instructions are wanted in Montana. Not to mention their tasty in-store restaurants and bistros
Does IKEA still serve meatballs? You bet they do. Items on IKEA’s menu include: “Breakfast Plate with Swedish Pancakes. Swedish Meatballs, Served with Mashed Potatoes and Lingonberry Jam. Garlic Lemon Cod. Marinated Salmon Wraps. Stockholm Salad, Served on Mixed Greens with Marinated Salmon.
MORE: Where To Find Montana’s Best Burgers
Yes, You Can Really Live in this Snazzy Converted Missouri Silo
Gallery Credit: Deanna Gould with Ritter Real Estate, Realtor.com
A Photo Journal of Some Of the Adirondack Park’s Most Historic Churches
There is just so much history in our Adirondack Mountains region. A lot of that history can be traced back through its many old and historic churches. This gallery takes a look at several them. They are all well over 100 years old. They display several different kinds of church architecture (of the period). All have great back stories to them. And some of them are even only accessible by boat.
Take a look at these sacred sites, all in the Adirondack Park.
Gallery Credit: Chuck D’Imperio
The Best Disc Golf Courses In Montana
Gallery Credit: mwolfe
Montana
February 26 recap: Missoula and Western Montana news you may have missed today
Montana
Escobar, Jayapal, Members of Congress Call on Camp East Montana to be Shut Down – Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal
(Washington, D.C.) – Today, Congresswoman Veronica Escobar (TX-16) – joined by Representative Pramila Jayapal, the Ranking Member of the Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement Subcommittee, and 22 other Members of Congress – sent a letter to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Acting Director Todd Lyons calling for the immediate closure of Camp East Montana in El Paso. They cite urgent humanitarian concerns following multiple deaths in custody, documented unsafe conditions, and serious deficiencies in medical care.
This marks the fourth letter Congresswoman Escobar has sent to DHS and ICE leadership. The previous three letters have gone unanswered.
The letter can be found in its entirety below and here.
“Secretary Noem and Acting Director Lyons:
We are urgently calling on the Department of Homeland Security (DHS or the Department) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to shut down Camp East Montana in El Paso, Texas.
Camp East Montana has been operational for six months, and at least three people have died at the site since December 2025: Francisco Gaspar-Andres, Geraldo Lunas Campos, and Victor Manuel Diaz. The El Paso County Medical Examiner has officially ruled Lunas Campos’ death a homicide, citing “asphyxia due to neck and torso compression.”
Camp East Montana was constructed in a matter of weeks and opened before construction was complete and it does not have enough federal staff on-site to provide adequate oversight. Over the last several months, Congresswoman Veronica Escobar, in whose district this facility is located, has sent multiple letters to DHS and ICE regarding concerns about the conditions at Camp East Montana, and has received no responses.
According to detainees, there have been constant and consistent problems at the facility since it opened, beginning with the facility’s poor construction and poor ambient temperature control. Upon opening, the drinking water at Camp East Montana tasted foul and made some detainees sick. Detainees continue to be served inadequate meals, including food that is rotten or frozen; last fall, the facility was also consistently failing to make dietary accommodations for detainees. Detainees have shared that they have sporadic access to outside spaces and recreational areas, and that their dormitory pods are cleaned only once every eight days, despite pods housing up to 72 people at a time. Laundry services are not consistent, and people are washing their clothes in the facility showers. Additionally, the facility experiences flooding and sewage backups when it rains, leading to stagnant water.
One of the biggest concerns with the Camp East Montana facility is the inadequate medical care being provided to detainees. Our offices have heard that only the most ill detainees are referred to the medical unit and that there are inconsistencies as to how soon after arriving detainees are able to undergo initial medical screenings. Detainees with chronic health issues who rely on regimented medications for their health have had difficulty accessing necessary medications, including blood pressure medication and insulin.
At least one of the deaths that occurred in ICE custody, the death of Francisco Gaspar-Andres, appears to partially be the result of poor medical care by staff at the facility. According to ICE’s own account, Gaspar-Andres sought medical attention from facility staff for increasingly serious symptoms, but was only transferred to an area hospital once his condition had severely deteriorated.
In addition to our concerns about poor medical care, we are also aware that detainees have experienced irregular access to their legal counsel, including instances of detainees having only two minutes allotted per phone call every 8 days, which is contrary to ICE’s Detention Standards on access to counsel, and that the belatedly created law library lacks adequate resources for the amount of people currently held at the facility. In January 2026, ICE announced the on-site death of Geraldo Lunas Campos “after experiencing medical distress.” ICE opened an investigation into the death, but did not provide a cause of death. However, The Washington Post later reported that another man detained at Camp East Montana had witnessed guards choking Lunas Campos when he refused to enter a segregated housing unit. Weeks later, the El Paso County Medical Examiner ruled that Lunas Campos had experienced “asphyxia due to neck and torso compression” and ruled his death a homicide.
Lunas Campos is the first detainee to die at Camp East Montana as a result of a use-of-force incident, but we are strongly concerned that he will not be the last if ICE is allowed to continue operating Camp East Montana.
ICE was given $45 billion in taxpayer dollars in the reconciliation bill, $1.2 billion of which were awarded to Acquisition Logistics, LLC, a company with no previous experience managing immigration detention facilities, to build and oversee Camp East Montana. However, in the wake of three deaths in custody so far, continued concerns about conditions at the facility, and ICE’s apparent disinterest in responding to oversight letters from Congress, we do not believe Camp East Montana is being run professionally or responsibly.
Camp East Montana must be shut down. For the safety of everyone at the facility, for an end to abuses to detainees, and for fiscal responsibility to the American people, the site cannot continue to operate. We are calling on DHS and ICE to move to immediately close operations at Camp East Montana.
We look forward to hearing from the Department promptly on this matter.
The other co-signers include Representatives Yassamin Ansari, Nanette Barragán, Yvette Clarke, Lloyd Doggett, Maxwell Frost, Jesús “Chuy” García, Sylvia Garcia, Daniel Goldman, Jimmy Gomez, Henry Johnson, Stephen Lynch, Seth Moulton, Eleanor Holmes Norton, Delia Ramirez, Andrea Salinas, Janice Schakowsky, Darren Soto, Rashida Tlaib, Paul Tonko, Lauren Underwood, Gabe Vasquez, and Nydia Velázquez.
Issues: Immigration
Montana
Governor’s energy task force continues public discussions on data centers
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