Looking Back: Summit House planned; new hospital drawings revealed
A look back at past Pilot articles by Julie Engler.
50 Years Ago
March 14, 1974
An open house was scheduled to celebrate the completion of the new junior high school gym at Central school. Along with tours of the new, two-story facility, a youth fair demonstrating student projects and continuous concerts was staged. Coffee and cookies were served from the lunch facilities in the new building. Tours of the building were conducted with diagrams and facts sheets distributed outlining the building’s facilities and where they are located.
40 Years Ago
March 15, 1984
During Montana Gov. Ted Schwinden’s visit to The Big Mountain, Winter Sports, Inc. president Bill Martin released specific details of the scheduled expansion. Four projects scheduled to be completed by the start of the 1984-85 ski season will cost Winter Sports $3 million. They included: the opening of the back side of Big Mountain into the Big Creek Basin, the construction of a 4,000 square-foot summit house to service skiers on top of Big Mountain, the remodeling of Chair 4 to increase skier capacity to the top by an additional 600 skiers per hour, and the replacement of the existing rope tow with a new platter lift.
30 Years Ago
March 10, 1994
The draft Environmental Impact Statement for US. Highway 93 Somers to Whitefish was released. The document was completed two months ahead of schedule. The Statement included four options for rebuilding the highway, including a “no build” alternative. Alternative A was a four-lane highway with a median running through roughly the same corridor Highway 93 was currently on. Alternative B is a four-lane design with a fifth lane for two-way left-turns. A combination of the two alternatives made up alternative C.
20 Years Ago
March 11, 2004
North Valley Hospital unveiled drawings of its proposed new hospital south of Whitefish in preparation for a pivotal public hearing. The $26 million, 72,300 square-foot facility would be built on 45 acres near U.S. 93 and Montana 40. The design features 18 patient rooms with windows that allow a mountain view. Four intensive-care rooms are planned along with three labor-delivery rooms and three post-partum rooms, hospital administrator Craig Aasved said.
10 Years Ago
February 12, 2014
Nearly 50 properties along Houston Drive were paced at the top of the city’s priority list for possible annexation. During a work session, the Whitefish City Council directed city staff to proceed with possible annexation of the neighborhood. The city cited a need for annexation in a few areas adjacent to city limits as a way to have residents pay for the city services they already use. The water quality of Whitefish Lake also has been noted as a reason for annexation.