Archive: April 2025

County Elections Department Plans Move to Metra Park

7 April 2025
Evelyn Pyburn
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By Evelyn Pyburn

Yellowstone County Commissioners are taking a hard look at moving the county’s Election Department, in its entirety, to Metra Park.

With the Election’s Department Director, Ginger Aldrich, concerned about not having enough space for the Department to perform its functions, especially after what was experienced in the November general election, County Commissioner Mike Waters took on the challenge of delving into the problem to come up with a solution. At Wednesday’s discussion meeting county officials reviewed the options, challenges and recommendations.

Waters and Aldrich’s top recommendation is to do some renovations of Cedar Hall at MetraPark and make it the one-stop location for most aspects of conducting elections. While the move will not provide all of the space that Aldrich projected as needed it does come close and offers many benefits.

Such as: The location of MetraPark is well known to everybody and many people are already used to going there to vote. The location has ample parking and plenty of space to accommodate dropping off ballots. And perhaps most beneficial is that ballots remain in one location which generates more public confidence in the integrity of elections.

Other options that were scrutinized included splitting operations between the new administration building, which is in the process of being refurbished for county departments, and to continue to lease space from Wells Fargo, which is a solution that has been used in the last two years. Waters said he was anxious to end the cost of that lease.

Another suggestion was to continue with the plan to have the main “front facing” Election office in the County Administration Building (CAB), the former Miller Building, and perform some of the other functions in the Cedar Hall location. Aldrich and some of those working for the department commented that it was one thing to have to walk back and forth between the Election’s office and the Wells Fargo Building (often as many as five times a day) and quite another to have to drive back and forth from the CAB and MetraPark. It also increases concerns about security and election integrity.

Aldrich also announced out that the City of Billings offered first floor space in their new office building (the Stillwater Building) at a “very generous rate.” While the distance between the Stillwater Building and the CAB is greater than that of their current office and Wells Fargo, it would still be doable, and the great entry way into the Stillwater Building would accommodate the long lines that often occur for Elections.

Kevan Bryan, Director, Office of Management Budget at Yellowstone County, expressed concerns about the fact that the Cedar Hall location will still not meet all of the space that Aldrich, initially, estimated as needed.

Waters’ provided a statement regarding the positive aspects that the Cedar Hall option provides:

“The strength of this option is based on the fact that it can be used to maintain the front-facing office and the operational side in one place. This is a significant advantage and the Elections Department is willing to configure a smaller space specifically to ensure both registration and ballot processing stay together. Management of election judges and registration in two areas is challenging when they are one block apart. Separating them by more than a walkable space would not allow effective oversight or management of both registration and ballot processing.

The ground level space provides positive aspects for:

— Accessibility of the public including disabled and elderly voters

— Movement of mail, ballots, and other bulky items such as polling place material drop off by county staff and election judges

–Negates the need for adequate elevator space / a freight elevator

Rejected ballots and other materials flow between the registration office and the operations side. Unifying these processes ensures:

— Temporary election judges work under direct supervision from permanent staff

— Ballots and other election materials remain within the custody and control of election space, rather than having to move between spaces with additional paperwork requirements and the logistics of moving those materials to another site.

Consumer Sentiment Fell in February, Inflation Expected

7 April 2025
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Confidence among American consumers fell sharply in February, hitting a 29-month low, while long-run inflation expectations recorded their biggest monthly jump in 32 years, according to the latest University of Michigan consumer sentiment survey.

U.S. households are bracing for some uncertainty—possibly turbulence—as tariffs and other policies take effect, and as government spending shifts to the private sector, comments Epoch Times.

The University of Michigan’s survey showed sentiment plunging 11 percent last month to a preliminary reading of 57.9, down from 64.7 in January and the lowest level since November 2022. The index has now dropped 22 percent since December, when post-election enthusiasm over President Donald Trump’s pro-business policies sent confidence soaring.

Inflation expectations are also rising. Long-run inflation projections climbed from 3.5 percent in January to 3.9 percent in February—the largest month-over-month increase since 1993. Short-term expectations rose as well, with year-ahead inflation forecasts jumping from 4.3 percent to 4.9 percent, marking the highest reading in 29 months and the third consecutive month of significant increases.

Despite these declines, the data suggest consumers are more concerned about the future than the present, as job market conditions and broader economic indicators remain relatively strong.

President Trump has dismissed concerns about a downturn. He told reporters on March 11 that he does not believe a recession is coming “at all” and said that the country is “going to boom.”

Inflation expectations are also rising. Long-run inflation projections climbed from 3.5 percent in January to 3.9 percent in February—the largest month-over-month increase since 1993. Short-term expectations rose as well, with year-ahead inflation forecasts jumping from 4.3 percent to 4.9 percent, marking the highest reading in 29 months and the third consecutive month of significant increases.

Despite these declines, the data suggest consumers are more concerned about the future than the present, as job market conditions and broader economic indicators remain relatively strong.

Trump has dismissed concerns about a downturn. He told reporters on March 11 that he does not believe a recession is coming “at all” and said that the country is “going to boom.”

Some analysts believe consumer anxiety may be overstated. Jamie Cox, managing partner at Harris Financial Group, downplayed the significance of the survey’s steep decline.

“Extreme readings are more noise than signal,” Cox stated. However, he noted that the prospect of fiscal tightening could be unsettling: “I’m pretty sure people won’t like austerity—and these readings may very well reflect what people see coming. Free money has a price, and it’s no fun when it ends.”

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has called Trump’s economic approach “the most important thing America has ever had.” He suggested that even if a brief recession occurs, it will be “worth it.”

“The only reason there could possibly be a recession is because of the Biden nonsense that we had to live with,” Lutnick told CBS, echoing Trump’s claim that Biden-era spending drove inflation and created an unsustainable economic sugar high. Lutnick said Trump’s policies will be revenue-generating: “They produce growth. They produce factories being built here.”

The University of Michigan’s consumer confidence came ahead of the Federal Reserve’s decision to hold interest rates steady in the 4.25–4.50 percent range.

The Fed raised rates by 5.25 percentage points in 2022 and 2023 to combat inflation, which surged to a multi-decade high of 9 percent during Biden’s tenure.

Meanwhile, in contrast to the University of Michigan data, the latest Freedom Economy Index (FEI) survey reveals a dramatic turnaround in sentiment among America’s small businesses.

The March 2025 survey, which polled a nationwide sample of 50,000 small business owners, shows a seismic shift—with 80 percent now reporting increased economic optimism since November, and 68 percent expecting economic growth in 2025. This marks a sharp reversal from October 2024, when 57 percent were predicting a recession.

Commissioners Reject Bike Trail Master Plan

7 April 2025
Evelyn Pyburn
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By Evelyn Pyburn

Yellowstone County Commissioners unanimously rejected the Billings Area Pedestrian and Bicycle Master Plan, which was presented to them by the City –County Planning Department. Besides the commissioners, the plan goes before the Yellowstone County Planning Board, the Billings City Council, and the Policy Coordinating Committee (PCC) for approval.

As the plan was being presented to the County Commissioners by Alta Planning+ Design, the engineering firm engaged to develop it, Commissioner John Ostlund raised questions about whether they weighed the cost vs benefits of spending so much on building trails for the use of so few people.  He said he has been involved with the issue for many years and has observed that one can drive around the community on a very nice day and not see even ten bikes on the bike trails.  “I can’t find a bike on the bike trails,” he said.

Ostlund referenced S. 32nd  Street W. in Billings, where a bike trail shares the pavement of a very busy thoroughfare with heavy traffic that is often stalled waiting to move forward – with their motors running – while beside them is a  bike lane with not one bike on it, that could be used for more space to improve the traffic flow.

Ostlund said, “I am not going to rubber stamp the plans going forward. I will vote no,” because over the years, “I have asked and asked” about whether this has been reviewed. “It’s a terrible investment. I have never seen anything that spends so much with less benefit.”

Ostlund pointed out that the cost for striping and for signage of a bike trail on city streets, exceeds the cost of striping and signage for the street.

He challenged the practicality of following the federal “Complete Streets” program, which Billings adopted, saying he believes “Complete Streets is a complete failure.”

Elyse Monat, Transportation Planner for the City of Billings Planning Division, said that there have been changes to the plan to make users more comfortable in using bike trails, those routes are identified in the plan as “high comfort.” They involve shared-use paths and provide facilities for pedestrians such as neighborhood bikeways, bike lanes, buffered bike lanes, and separated bike lanes.

Lora Mattox, Transportation Planning Coordinator for the Planning Division, explained the goal of having a bike trail system. “We are trying to make sure people who don’t drive have a means of transportation.”

County Commissioner Mike Waters said that he has noticed trails get the most use in park areas. He added that they do serve “such a small population” and while “it is a lofty goal, we spend a lot of money on them.”

Mattox replied, “We do try to take advantage of the parks .. we are trying to be more diligent in how we plan for these facilities.”

County Commissioner Mark Morse asked about the funding.

Elyse Monat explained the “external funding” they have received in the past, citing a number of federal grants.

Morse responded, “All of it is government tax money.”

Monat conceded that it was, but there is some funding from private organizations—mostly for upkeep.

Morse asked whether they push some of the costs onto private developers.

Monat replied that, “Yes, it is very common that developers will enter an agreement with the city to build sidewalks” and other internal structures in subdivisions to serve the transportation needs.

Mattox further explained, “We have been hearing that people want more connectivity…they want to connect between subdivisions . . . they want to have sidewalk connections.”

Ostlund underscored that sidewalks are not bike trails, and replied, “I like the sidewalks. The Safe Routes to School, if they have a funding source.”

Morse questioned varying data included in the plan regarding attendees at public hearings and surveys. One survey was conducted at the Strawberry Festival where the number of respondents was stated to be 200. Morse asked, “Is this because you had a booth at the Strawberry Festival and anyone who walked by was counted as an attendee?”

Mattox said “We had an interactive poll and we counted them if they participated in it.”

There was discussion about the Billings Area Pedestrian and Bicycle program’s struggle to fund the cost of maintaining the trails. Morse said, “When your own plan says we can’t afford the maintenance. It is time to reconsider building them.”

The Plan sets out several goals of the Billings Area Pedestrian and Bicycle system. An overall objective of the Billings Area Pedestrian and Bicycle program is to reduce reliance on motor vehicles and to contribute to more walking and bicycling.

Most of the funding for bike trail construction comes from the federal government’s Federal Highway Administration

Local property tax dollars fund maintenance and safety improvements. Property owners are also assessed fees when developing new areas of growth, which may include donations of right away for trails.

Constructing bike and pedestrian trail costs between $62,652 to $1,523,144 per mile depending on where it is located and the degree to which safety measures and signage is required, whether it is separated from traffic or paved.

According to data in the master plan the daily average use of shared use paths, in the Billings area, is 3,786. Bike trail usage averages about 467 bikers a day throughout the system, according to plan data.

The Billings trails, over 61 miles of bike and pedestrian path ways, have been constructed including on-street bikeways, paved trails and sidewalks.

Billings Building Permits April 1, 2025

7 April 2025
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Commercial

Chase Moore, 50 Moore Ln, Com Footing/Foundation, $450,000

Winchell Real Estate Holdings|Scott Roby Remodel, 1807 Grand Ave, Com Remodel, $50,000

American Tower |Betacom Tower Modifications, 2111 4th Ave N, Com Remodel, $20,000

777 Properties LLC|B & W Builders Inc, 1310 15th St W, Com Remodel $18,000

Dibra Investment Holdings LLC|Wegner Homes, 4120 King Ave W, Com Fence/Roof/Siding, $2,558

Residential

Wilmouth Robert Joseph|Boyce Built LLC, 40 Heatherwood Ln, Res Remodel Single, $450,000

Billings South Shiloh LLC|ABCO Billings LLC, 1741 Packers Ln, Res New Two Family, $350,000

Billings South Shiloh LLC|ABCO Billings LLC, 4122 Dolphins Ln, Res New Two Family, $350,000

Billings South Shiloh LLC|ABCO Billings LLC, 4116 Dolphins Ln, Res New Two Family, $350,000

Billings South Shiloh LLC|ABCO Billings LLC, 4107 Vikings Trl, Res New Two Family, $350,000

Billings South Shiloh LLC|ABCO Billings LLC, 1730 Packers Ln, Res New Two Family, $350,000

Billings South Shiloh LLC|ABCO Billings LLC, 1736 Packers Ln, Res New Two Family, $350,000

Billings South Shiloh LLC|ABCO Billings LLC, 4113 Vikings Trl, Res New Two Family, $350,000

Billings South Shiloh LLC|ABCO Billings LLC, 4101 Vikings Trl, Res New Two Family, $350,000

Houston Randy & Rhonda|Chamberlain Construction, 850 Agate Ave, Res New Single Family, $258,000

WH Copper Ridge 54 LLC|WH Copper Ridge 54 LLC, 7023 Copper Bend Blvd, Res New Single Family, $213,507

WH Copper Ridge 54 LLC|WH Copper Ridge 54 LLC, 7005 Copper Bend Blvd, Res New Single Family, $213,507

Aeronautics Board Allocated $3.2 million

7 April 2025
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The Montana Aeronautics Board has allocated more than $3.2 million in funding for fiscal year (FY) 2026. This funding is designated for a range of airport infrastructure enhancement initiatives.

A portion of the annual grants and loans is intended to match 95/5 Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) funding for substantial airport construction projects. Requests totaling approximately $5.7 million were submitted by 49 public-use airports throughout the state. Ultimately, the Board awarded funding for 123 out of 140 submitted project proposals from 44 public airports in Montana, encompassing both federally supported and non-federally supported projects.

26 Attorneys General File Brief Supporting Deportation of Gangs

7 April 2025
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By Sarah Roderick-Fitch, The Center Square

A coalition of state attorneys general is filing an amicus brief in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, urging the court to lift a nationwide restraining order that is “preventing” the “immediate deportation” of “Tren de Aragua gang members.”

Leading the effort are Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares and South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson, who joined 24 other states, including Montana, after a judge for the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia issued an order temporarily halting the deportations of members of the Venezuelan gang. The order came as the aircraft carrying the gang members was airborne.

The deportations followed President Donald Trump’s announcement that he was invoking the Alien Enemies Act of 1798. This prompted Chief Judge James Boasberg to immediately issue a temporary restraining order blocking the removal of “all noncitizens in U.S. custody who are subject” to the president’s order.

Boasberg ordered the planes en route to Central America to be turned around. The Trump administration immediately appealed Boasberg’s order to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals.

The planes carrying the migrants arrived in El Salvador, with the Trump administration claiming they complied with the court order but that the aircraft was out of U.S. airspace by the time Boasberg issued his order.

In January, the president designated Tren de Aragua a foreign terrorist organization, along with seven other cartels from Latin America.

In the latest brief, the coalition of attorneys general argues that allowing the TRO to stand “undermines public safety and national security, placing American lives at risk.”

The group defended the president’s executive order, saying it is “grounded in clear constitutional and statutory authority to remove TdA members.” They added that the district court “overstepped its bounds by issuing a restraining order without fully considering the Executive Branch’s compelling interest in national security.”

Miyares underscored the duties of the government in protecting its citizens, adding that the president’s actions are constitutionally protected.

“The core duty of government is to protect its citizens. The President, acting within his constitutional and statutory authority, did just that by ordering the removal of TdA gang members who have no legal right to be in this country and pose a direct threat to Americans’ safety. TdA is a violent transnational criminal organization responsible for heinous crimes across the United States. The law is clear, and so is our position,” said Miyares.

The brief comes on the heels of Rep. Brandon Gill, R-Texas, introducing articles of impeachment against Boasberg, who was appointed to the bench by former president Barack Obama.

Earlier in the day, the president called Boasberg a “Radical Left Lunatic” in a Truth Social post, adding that the judge “should be impeached.”

The post led U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts to issue rare comments criticizing the president, saying the court system should be left to resolve legal disputes.

“For more than two centuries, it has been established that impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision,” Roberts said Tuesday in a statement. “The normal appellate review process exists for that purpose.”

Other states that joined the coalition: Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah and West Virginia.

‘Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death,’ 250 Years Later

7 April 2025
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Marking the 250th anniversary of Patrick Henry’s famous speech.

By Lawrence W. Reed, Foundation for Economic Freedom

In St. John’s Episcopal Church in Richmond, Virginia, delegates from around the colony gathered to discuss matters that would rile Britain’s distant King and set Virginia on a path to rebellion. It was March 23, 1775.

One man, a homeschooled and self-taught lawyer who became a prominent planter and a member of the colony’s House of Burgesses, rose to speak. His remarks were described by a witness as “one of the boldest, vehement, and animated pieces of eloquence that had ever been delivered.” That man was Patrick Henry.

Few speeches in history resonated more powerfully than did Henry’s on that momentous occasion. Is there any American in the 250 years since who doesn’t know its most famous line, “Give me liberty or give me death!”?

Tensions between the 13 American colonies and the mother country had risen since King George III ascended to the throne in 1760. Decades of “salutary neglect,” during which the colonies governed themselves with little outside interference, gave way to a meddlesome monarch and a pushy Parliament. At the same time, Enlightenment ideas of liberty were gaining ground from New England to the Deep South. London’s attempts to impose taxation without representation and otherwise erode what the colonists saw as the traditional rights of Englishmen led some by 1775 to think the unthinkable: independence.

Thirty-nine-year-old Patrick Henry had already stuck his neck out by asking the convention to create a Virginia militia to prepare for a war he believed was inevitable. Those who still held out for peace and reconciliation were shocked. They knew that forming an army without London’s consent was nothing short of treason. But Henry began his oration with a ringing defense of his position. To remain quiet and do nothing, he declared, would itself be treason “and an act of disloyalty toward the Majesty of Heaven, which I revere above all earthly kings.”

What has come down to us since that day is not a verbatim transcript of Henry’s remarks but rather a reconstruction based on eyewitness accounts. The version generally accepted as probably the closest to the original was prepared by William Wirt and published in 1817. What is beyond all doubt, however, is this: Henry’s speech was a barnburner that left the assembled audience in stunned silence for several minutes.

Henry noted that previous attempts at resolving issues with London were often met with sweet words followed by harsh action. He urged his fellow Virginians not to “be betrayed with a kiss” again. Take notice instead, he said, of “those warlike preparations which cover our waters and darken our land”:

These are the implements of war and subjugation; the last arguments to which kings resort. I ask gentlemen, sir, what means this martial array, if its purpose be not to force us to submission? … Has Great Britain any enemy, in this quarter of the world, to call for all this accumulation of navies and armies? No, sir, she has none. They are meant for us: they can be meant for no other. They are sent over to bind and rivet upon us those chains which the British ministry have been so long forging.

The storm was coming, warned Henry. Indeed, the “shot heard ’round the world” would be fired at Lexington the following month. The time for debate and petitions was past. In no uncertain terms, this fiery patriot advised his friends what must be done:

If we wish to be free—if we mean to preserve inviolate those inestimable privileges for which we have been so long contending—if we mean not basely to abandon the noble struggle in which we have been so long engaged, and which we have pledged ourselves never to abandon until the glorious object of our contest shall be obtained—we must fight! I repeat it, sir, we must fight!

Who would come to America’s aid? How could 13 colonies, even if united, take on the world’s preeminent military power all by themselves? The delegates were wondering about that very uncertainty, but Henry gave them an answer. “There is a just God who presides over the destinies of nations, and who will raise up friends to fight our battles for us,” he pronounced. Indeed, many Americans would come to regard their two greatest allies in the war with Britain to be in this order: God and the French. “The battle, sir, is not to the strong alone,” Henry reminded his listeners. “It is to the vigilant, the active, the brave.”

In about 1,200 words, Patrick Henry put everything on the line. No equivocation, no hesitations, no suggested compromises. He was as decisive as an orator can be. His final sentences ring with the clarity of a church bell to this day:

It is in vain, sir, to extenuate the matter. Gentlemen may cry, Peace, Peace—but there is no peace. The war is actually begun! The next gale that sweeps from the north will bring to our ears the clash of resounding arms! Our brethren are already in the field! Why stand we here idle? What is it that gentlemen wish? What would they have? Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!

Thomas Jefferson and George Washington were present and stirred by Henry’s words. So was Edward Carrington, who later served with distinction as a lieutenant colonel in Washington’s Continental Army. Carrington listened to Henry’s speech from outside one of the church’s windows. He was so moved by it that he turned to friends and said, “Boys, bury me here, in this very spot!” When he died 34 years later, he was indeed buried under that window.

The convention rallied to Henry’s cause and moved to place Virginia “in a posture of defense.” Washington, Jefferson, and a handful of others were appointed to prepare a plan to create an army. Lord Dunmore, the British-appointed Governor of Virginia, would soon abandon the colony and flee on a ship. Patrick Henry became the first Governor of the new state of Virginia in the same month the Declaration of Independence was signed, July 1776.

In the long and storied history of the struggle for liberty, “the speech” of March 23, 1775, in that Richmond church surely ranks as one of the most memorable orations of all time.

$100,000 for Ten Civic Groups

7 April 2025
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Early this week, Coca-Cola Bottling Co. High Country in partnership with Dick Anderson Construction held a gathering at which the two companies donated $100,000 to ten local non-profit community organizations, with $10,000 checks presented to each.  Dick Anderson Construction built the new $21 million bottling plant for Coca Cola High Country which opened in June 2024.

The event was held at the new plant, where Tura Synhorst, Executive Vice President of High Country, welcomed representatives of the community organizations and thanked them for their support of the community. She said that her company is dedicated “to enriching and uplifting the communities we serve, with a special focus on youth programs and community activities.”

Organizations receiving the donations were:

—The Education Foundation of Billings Public Schools

—Northern Lights Family Justice Center

—Rimrock Foundation

—Billings Trail Net

—Laurel Little League

— Yellowstone Soccer Association

—BAHL Youth Scholarship Fund of Hockey League

—Billings YMCA

—Hoodies for Heroes

—All Kids Bike Foundation

Coca-Cola Bottling Co. High Country donated $75,000, and Dick Anderson Construction donated $25,000.

Having been founded in 1956, Coca-Cola Bottling Co. High Country, a four-generation family enterprise, is celebrating nearly 70 years in business.

In addition, 2025 marks Dick Anderson Construction’s 50th year in business. 

Headquartered in Rapid City, South Dakota, Coca-Cola Bottling Company High Country serves over 2.4 million consumers regionally across portions of Colorado, Minnesota, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah and Wyoming. Headquartered in Rapid City, South Dakota, the company manufactures, sells and distributes hundreds of different varieties of sparkling soft drinks and a vast array of still beverages including sports drinks, bottled waters, juices and juice drinks, teas, energy drinks and coffee.

Founded in Helena, Montana in 1975, Dick Anderson Construction, Inc. (DAC) has grown from a small, private client company to a regional general construction manager and contracting industry leader with over four hundred employees. Its structured growth and success are the direct result of diversified employees, quality work, and valued relationships with clients and project team members. As the construction market has expanded and diversified over the past 50 years, DAC has remained at the forefront of innovative project delivery. DAC remains a Montana-based firm, working from eight offices across Montana and Wyoming, with a market-leading portfolio of commercial construction, GC/CM, and Design-Build projects. For the past seven years, Engineering News-Record has recognized DAC as one of the Top 400 Contractors in the nation.