The Billings Gazette (Billings, MT) articles from September 2006

The Billings Gazette (Billings, MT) archives from September 2006

Ex-employee: Refinery tampered with meter.
September 5, 2006... Byline: Clair Johnson Sep. 5--A former CHS Inc. engineer who worked at the Laurel refinery claims the company retaliated against him for blowing the whistle on the tampering of a meter at a sulfur plant. The meter tampering, the engineer...

Northern Hotel to close Friday.
September 7, 2006... Byline: Jan Falstad Sep. 7--The historic Northern Hotel, which has graced the downtown Billings landscape for a century, will close Friday, and management of the property will fall to a bankruptcy trustee. The financially troubled...

City gives support for roundabouts.
September 12, 2006... Byline: Ed Kemmick Sep. 12--The Billings City Council went on record Monday night in support of building seven or eight roundabouts as part of the reconstruction of Shiloh Road on the city's West End. Council members also voted to...

Fraud charges against Montana financial advisor hit $6 million.
September 15, 2006... Byline: Jan Falstad Sep. 15--The Montana State Auditor's office expanded its probe into the financial dealings of Billings financial adviser Pat Davison on Thursday, charging that he defrauded nine investors or organizations of...

Lockwood, Mont., steering committee looks for revenue sources.
September 15, 2006... Byline: Angie Buckley Sep. 15--LOCKWOOD -- With the Lockwood Community Plan approved and in hand, the steering committee that coordinated the plan is embarking on a mission to find revenue resources aside from property taxes. During a...

Energy, taxes top HD47 issues.
September 18, 2006... Byline: Jim Gransberry Sep. 18--The opponents in House District 47 have their focus on the same issues: energy, health care, education and taxes, but they differ in the means to accomplish their goals. Democrat Dick Skewis is making a...

Facilities study on school board agenda.
September 18, 2006... Byline: Laura Tode Sep. 18--The Billings School District 2 board will discuss tonight whether or not to conduct a comprehensive facilities study. The proposal includes evaluation of all 29 school campuses by an independent consultant and...

Cobb Field backers unveil bond issue campaign.
September 19, 2006... Byline: Lance Benzel Sep. 19--A group advocating for a new Cobb Field has unveiled the sales pitch it will use to persuade Billings voters to approve a $12.5 million bond issue set for the November ballot. The nonprofit agency -- Our...

Beet harvest gears up despite rain.
September 19, 2006... Byline: Jim Gransbery Sep. 19--Despite slowing the early sugar beet harvest, Tony Zitterkopf's only comment on the weekend moisture was, "What a glorious rain." "Not the best timing for us, but what this will do for the grass and...

Head Start selects new executive director.
September 19, 2006... Byline: Laura Tode Sep. 19--The Head Start board of directors in Billings has named a new executive director to replace Judy Bryngelson, who has led the federal preschool program for 25 years. Sally Leep, director of Tumbleweed Runaway...

School facilities study nixed for now; price major concern.
September 19, 2006... Byline: Laura Tode Sep. 19--The Billings School District 2 Board decided Monday night not to move forward with a $106,800 facilities study, but gave its blessing for the creation of an office of development and advancement within the...

Leak delays opening of air-traffic tower.
September 20, 2006... Byline: Tom Howard Sep. 20--The new $15.5 million air-traffic control tower at Billings Logan International Airport could remain offline for weeks while the Federal Aviation Administration repairs a leak that dripped water onto a...

Montana Women's Run donates more than $50K to health efforts.
September 20, 2006... Sep. 20--The Montana Women's Run on Tuesday donated $50,100 to health and fitness programs for women in Billings. The money was raised during the organization's 25th annual event in May. "This year was incredibly special for our...

Rotomilling planned on 19th Street.
September 20, 2006... Sep. 20--Weather permitting, beginning at 7 a.m. Thursday, JTL Group Inc. will be rotomilling the asphalt on 19th Street West between Central Avenue and Monad Road. The work should last until 7 p.m. Two-way traffic will be maintained, and...

Fair earns biggest profit in 7 years.
September 21, 2006... Byline: Tom Howard Sep. 21--MontanaFair 2006 earned its biggest profit in at least seven years, finishing $209,105 in the black. That's five times more than the fair earned last year, and nearly double the $123,000 profit earned in...

Insurance agent admits fraud.
September 21, 2006... Byline: Clair Johnson Sep. 21--A Billings insurance agent Wednesday admitted he defrauded companies and laundered money. Michael Don Hutton, 59, pleaded guilty in federal court to wire fraud, mail fraud and money laundering. The...

Pioneer Park neighbors air concerns.
September 21, 2006... Byline: Laura Tode Sep. 21--Speeding traffic was an overwhelming concern as neighbors in the area of Pioneer Park gathered Wednesday night to voice their concerns to city officials. More than 40 people attended the meeting, held in...

Laurel-based YMCA bristles at Billings takeover.
September 21, 2006... Byline: Becky Shay Sep. 21--LAUREL -- The Yellowstone Valley YMCA in Laurel has gone through major changes in recent weeks and is now operating under the umbrella of the Billings YMCA. The board of the Billings YMCA disbanded the...

Billings Clinic plans its own cancer center.
September 22, 2006... Byline: Diane Cochran Sep. 22--Billings Clinic plans to build a multimillion-dollar cancer research and treatment center adjacent to its downtown campus within three years. The hospital would dissolve its 20-year partnership with St....

Library plans program on starting a business.
September 22, 2006... Sep. 22--Parmly Billings Library will sponsor a free public program titled "What You Need to Know To Open a Business in Billings" at 7 p.m. Wednesday in the third-floor meeting room. Deanna South of the Big Sky Economic Development...

A better shape for Conoco Triangle?
September 25, 2006... Byline: Lance Benzel Sep. 25--Sometimes, it takes a bit of pushing to get things going. That's what Jim Ronquillo, city councilman and member of the South Side Task Force, believes happened in the South Side neighborhood traditionally...

Senior housing before council.
September 25, 2006... Sep. 25--A plan for a major West End senior housing development near Shiloh Road goes before the City Council tonight. Mountain West Senior Housing LLC plans to develop a 294-unit residential center that will provide a mix of housing...

Seminar aids businesses to cut waste.
September 26, 2006... Byline: Linda Halstead-Acharya Sep. 26--Peter Christ doesn't have his staff pawing through the garbage bin, but thinking about what gets tossed has become second nature to his employees at Bridge Creek Backcountry Kitchen and Wine Bar in...

Proposal for senior housing approved by City Council.
September 26, 2006... Byline: Tom Howard Sep. 26--Among the dozens of businesses hoping to take root along Shiloh Road is a proposed housing development that will serve the community's growing population of senior citizens. On Monday the City Council...

Billings, Mont., depot board aims for change.
September 28, 2006... Sep. 28--Changes are under way at the Billings Depot. The board that oversees the historic downtown facility has hired Christine Twito, a consultant for special events, to craft a marketing strategy for the Depot. Twito has lined up a...

Radiation center workers in Billings, Mont., and Cody wonder about future.
September 28, 2006... Byline: Diane Cochran Sep. 28--Almost 40 people who work for Northern Rockies Radiation Oncology Center in Billings and its satellite office in Cody, Wyo., don't know what will happen to their jobs. And they don't know when they will...

County buys land south of King.
September 29, 2006... Sep. 29--The county commissioners on Thursday agreed to purchase about 15 acres of property south of Yellowstone County Detention Facility to accommodate future expansion of the jail and the county's public works department. The county...

Schools get help patrolling.
September 29, 2006... Byline: Laura Tode Sep. 29--When school resource officer Misti Robertson has some downtime in her day at Lewis and Clark Middle School, she surfs the MySpace pages on the Internet to see what her students and other teens in Billings are up...