Map details city's plans for export plant area

The Libby City Council continues to solidify plans for the old export plant so that the Environmental Protection Agency’s approaching asbestos cleanup can coincide with the area’s future use.

The council produced a detailed, to-scale map of their plan for the area at Monday’s council meeting, the result of the council’s efforts since its meeting with the EPA on the subject last week.

However, details are still being hammered out.

“We’re still working on walkways,” Councilmember Ron Carter said. “A number of issues are up in the air right now.”

The placement of the walkways must be decided almost immediately. The city received a grant last year to pour concrete sidewalks at Riverfront Park, but they must be completed and inspected by the end of the month.

Former walkway plans don’t match up with the council’s new placement of the park’s road and bathrooms.

“We’ll generate another drawing tonight,” Carter said Wednesday, “to show the contractor where to lay that sidewalk.”

The council is working with the State Highway Department to move the Highway 37 approach further south from the bridge and working with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks about a proposed fishing platform off of Kootenai River near the Fred Brown Pavilion. 

In other news at Monday’s meeting:

• The council voted 5-0, with Peggy Williams absent, to turn over a $103,000 certificate of deposit for Troy’s Kootenai Senior Center to the city of Troy. The CD was part of the Grace settlement and had been managed by Libby.  

• The council voted 5-0 to take the Water and Sewer committee’s recommendation of not contributing to a water and sewer main extension near Libby High School. At the April 20 meeting James Regh requested the city supply the material for his project.

• The council unanimously passed a resolution of support for the proposed Stinger Welding business.

• The council voted 4-1, with Bill Bischoff opposing, to take the lights, streets and sidewalks committee recommendation of not contributing $1,000 for an artistic fishing pole structure. Todd Berget already built the piece of art to be placed beside Flower Creek on Rosauers property, adjacent to Highway 2. He secured $2,000 from businesses and requested the city chip in $1,000 more. The committee expressed that it wanted to fund art on city property.

• Scott Foss, who has put in thousands of volunteer hours into developing the Lee Gehring Field, requested the city fund an estimated $16,820 for a new fence for the field.