> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.missoula-commons.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Missoula Civic Look-ahead, October 19 to 25: A $1 million water controls contract, a first look at Reserve to Scott, and a quiet courthouse - URL: https://www.missoula-commons.com/missoula-civic-lookahead-2026-10-19/ - Published: 2026-10-18T16:48:29.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-18T16:48:29.000Z - Description: City Council committees take up a water controls contract of up to $1,042,739 and $368,845 for Missoula Aging Services, the Planning Commission gets its first look at the Reserve to Scott Master Plan, and the county commissioners cancel Thursday's meeting. - Author: Missoula Commons Staff - Tags: Civic *Monday, October 19 through Sunday, October 25, 2026* It's a scattered week at the courthouse and a full one at City Hall. The county commissioners' regular Thursday public meeting is canceled, and the commissioners' own schedule shows Commissioner Dave Strohmaier out of the office in New Orleans all week, Juanita Vero in Helena on Wednesday and Thursday, and Josh Slotnick in Helena on Friday. The Missoula Redevelopment Agency board, which usually meets on the third Thursday, has moved to Friday morning. And a note for downtown property owners: the city calendar lists the Business Improvement District board for Tuesday afternoon, but the district's own agenda puts its meeting, an all-afternoon board retreat, on Wednesday instead. The biggest dollar figures are on the city side Wednesday. Council committees take up a water system controls contract of up to $1,042,739 and a $368,845 annual funding contract for Missoula Aging Services, and the City Planning Commission gets its first look at the Reserve to Scott Master Plan and the zoning changes that go with it. At the county, Tuesday's administrative meeting carries a $64,000 contract to restore the historic courthouse clock, a $30,000 state emergency grant for repairs at Placid Lake Dam, grants for Just Response and the Domestic Violence Court, a resolution adopting dedicated roads as county roads, and letters asking Montana's congressional delegation to reauthorize Secure Rural Schools funding. That evening the Clinton Community Council takes up whether it should back a special district to pay for road improvements. ## Monday, October 19 ### Missoula City Council 6 p.m., Council Chambers, 140 W. Pine St., in person or on Teams. [Agenda](https://pub-missoula.escribemeetings.com/Meeting.aspx?Id=17c45873-0620-4692-9159-23b3eb8dbcc1&Agenda=Agenda&lang=English&ref=missoula-commons.com). A light night. There are no public hearings and no new business on the agenda. The council will hear neighborhood council updates and a proclamation of United Way of Missoula County Day, then vote on the consent agenda, which this week is just the bills: $1,885,203.22 in accounts payable for checks dated October 13 and $869,899.27 for checks dated October 20, about $2.76 million together. The agenda is scheduled to run an hour. Public comment on items not on the agenda comes early in the meeting, with up to three minutes per speaker and a 20-minute cap on the first round. The substantive work happens in committees on Wednesday, below, and whatever those committees approve typically comes back to the full council for a final vote on a later Monday. ### County commissioners' staff briefings Three of the commissioners' weekly department updates have something worth a look. All are in Conference Room 206, County Administration Building, 199 W. Pine St., or on Teams, and all are discussion only, with no votes. - 8:30 a.m., [Public Works](https://missoulacomt.portal.civicclerk.com/event/9889/files/agenda/18610?ref=missoula-commons.com): a discussion of Mullan Road from Cote to Kona Ranch Road, with Rep. Curdy listed as a guest attendee. The agenda gives no more detail than that, so we won't add any. - 9:30 a.m., [Lands and Communities](https://missoulacomt.portal.civicclerk.com/event/10466/files/agenda/18608?ref=missoula-commons.com): the official launch of the Good Neighbor Handbook, presented by Jenny Zaso. The county describes it as a one-stop guide to land stewardship for property owners with more than two acres, built with the Missoula Conservation District and Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks. The [county's handbook page](https://www.missoulacounty.gov/departments/open-lands/good-neighbor-handbook/?ref=missoula-commons.com) has the full PDF. - 11:30 a.m., [Health Department](https://missoulacomt.portal.civicclerk.com/event/10533/files/agenda/18612?ref=missoula-commons.com): an environmental health briefing on kratom, and a health services briefing on the Nurse Family Partnership. ### Missoula Food Policy Advisory Board 3:30 p.m., Clover Board Room, second floor of the Gerald W. Marks Exploration Center, 1075 South Ave. W., or on Teams. [Agenda](https://missoulacomt.portal.civicclerk.com/event/10417/files/agenda/18603?ref=missoula-commons.com). This is an advisory board, so nothing here is a final decision. The new business is a reflective session the agenda calls systems thinking: what issues are affecting Missoula's food systems, what's shaping those problems (the agenda names housing, employment, health and the political landscape), and how healthy the board's own network is. The board also gets updates on the Community Food Assessment, urban deer management, Climate Ready Missoula and the health department's community health improvement plan work group. It is recruiting for a vacancy, and its next meeting is November 16. ### Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Board 5 p.m., Mayor's Conference Room, 410 Ryman St., or on Teams. [Agenda](https://pub-missoula.escribemeetings.com/Meeting.aspx?Id=b03dc574-f504-4a95-a2e4-c02ba0dfbfa1&Agenda=Agenda&lang=English&ref=missoula-commons.com). Glenn Ingram from the Missoula Metropolitan Planning Organization presents the existing conditions report for the Active Transportation Plan update, the same report that goes to the Transportation Policy Coordinating Committee on Tuesday. The board also considers a letter of support for a Complete Streets policy and continues an older discussion on e-bikes and micromobility. It's advisory; it recommends, and the council and the MPO decide. Next meeting November 16. Earlier in the afternoon, at 3 p.m., the Missoula Civic Television Advisory Commission meets at 140 W. Pine St. to review what MCAT has been recording and pick items to televise. [Agenda](https://pub-missoula.escribemeetings.com/Meeting.aspx?Id=61bcd7ad-c2f0-4ecb-9b21-d74171feeff0&Agenda=Agenda&lang=English&ref=missoula-commons.com). ## Tuesday, October 20 ### Board of County Commissioners: administrative meeting 10 a.m., Conference Room 206, County Administration Building, 199 W. Pine St., or on Teams at [missoula.co/bccpublicmeeting](http://missoula.co/bccpublicmeeting?ref=missoula-commons.com). [Agenda](https://missoulacomt.portal.civicclerk.com/event/10205/files/agenda/18614?ref=missoula-commons.com). This is the week's one commissioner meeting with votes, since Thursday's public meeting is canceled. The consent agenda, which the board usually approves in a single vote, has eight items: - A $64,000 professional services agreement with The Tower Clock Co. to restore the historic clock in the Missoula County Courthouse. - A $30,000 emergency grant agreement with the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation for the Placid Lake Dam Emergency Repair Project. The agenda lists only the grant, not the project's total cost. - Two grants from the Montana Board of Crime Control, both under the federal Violence Against Women Act, one for Just Response and one for the Domestic Violence Court. - A maintenance and management agreement with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks for the Kona Fishing Access Site. - Authorization for the county's chief technology officer to sign a three-year Cloudflare licensing renewal, a Microsoft licensing renewal, and a master service agreement with Guidepoint Security. No dollar amounts are listed for the technology items. Two items get separate votes. One is a resolution adopting roads that were dedicated for public use as county roads, presented by Samuel Scott. The other is a settlement agreement and mutual release in a Fourth Judicial District Court case, Cause No. DV-32-2025-0000488-OC, presented by John Hart; the agenda does not describe the case. Under correspondence, the board is set to sign three letters to Senators Daines and Sheehy and Representative Zinke supporting the Secure Rural Schools Reauthorization Act of 2026, and a letter supporting a Community Development Block Grant application to partially fund the Old Hellgate Village Wastewater System Improvement Project. Earlier that morning, at 9 a.m., the commissioners get a [staff update from District Court, Justice Court and the Domestic Violence Court](https://missoulacomt.portal.civicclerk.com/event/10534/files/agenda/18619?ref=missoula-commons.com). It's a briefing, not a decision meeting. ### Transportation Policy Coordinating Committee 1:30 to 3 p.m., Council Chambers, 140 W. Pine St., or on Teams. [Agenda](https://pub-missoula.escribemeetings.com/Meeting.aspx?Id=b34fdc09-bd71-48b2-b552-4d211ad97123&Agenda=Agenda&lang=English&ref=missoula-commons.com). This is the policy board of the Missoula Metropolitan Planning Organization, the body that sets transportation planning for the urban area. City Council member Mirtha Becerra chairs it and Commissioner Strohmaier is vice chair. Beyond approving minutes, Tuesday's business is informational updates and discussion, with no action items listed. The main item is the existing conditions report for the Active Transportation Plan update, and the questions the MPO wants answered are the interesting part: how to define active transportation now that so much of it is electric-assist rather than non-motorized, how to weigh the safety of people walking and biking against goals like mode shift and closing network gaps, how the plan should shape development review and the city's new street types, and what to ask residents. Staff will also brief the committee on the MPO's redesignation and its updated planning area and agreements, and on proposed changes to U.S. Census data collection. If you want to shape the questions before the public survey goes out, this is the place. ### Clinton Community Council 6 p.m., Clinton Elementary School cafeteria, 20397 E. Mullan Road, Clinton, or by Google Meet (link on the agenda). [Agenda](https://missoulacomt.portal.civicclerk.com/event/10520/files/agenda/18604?ref=missoula-commons.com). If you live in Clinton and care about your roads, this is the meeting. Jason Mitchell from Missoula County Public Works has 30 minutes plus questions on special districts for road improvements, and later in the evening the council returns to whether it should support a special district for roads in Clinton. Community councils are advisory; any district would ultimately go through the county commissioners and the affected property owners. Also on the agenda: Blackfoot Communications on new wireless internet service, the Clark Fork Coalition's Lily Hanes on the Central Clark Fork Watershed Restoration Plan, the Clinton PTSA, a continued discussion of becoming a Bear Smart Community, and planning for the Clinton Days picnic in May. The council has asked county planning manager Izzy Varley to speak about the Comprehensive Plan update at a future meeting. Next meeting November 17. ### Swan Valley Community Council 6 to 8 p.m., Swan Valley Community Center, Condon. The county posted an agenda file for this meeting, but it could not be read when we checked on Sunday; the file opened blank. Check the [meeting page](https://missoulacomt.portal.civicclerk.com/event/10524?ref=missoula-commons.com) before you go. ### Downtown Business Improvement District: check the date The city calendar lists the BID board for Tuesday at 3 p.m., its usual third-Tuesday slot. The district's own [October agenda](https://www.missouladowntown.com/business-improvement-district/bid-board-meetings/?ref=missoula-commons.com) says otherwise: the board meets Wednesday, October 21, from 11:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at Stockman Bank, 321 W. Broadway, sixth floor, as part of the Downtown Missoula Partnership's annual board retreat. We go with the district's notice. The agenda is a planning session, with no votes listed: 2026 accomplishments, then 2027 planning on business support, marketing, staff capacity and preparing for BID renewal. That last item matters if you own downtown property, since the district is funded by an assessment on downtown property. ## Wednesday, October 21 ### City Council committees All four committees meet in Council Chambers, 140 W. Pine St., or on Teams. Committees don't make final decisions; what they approve goes to the full council, usually on the following Monday's consent agenda if the committee vote was unanimous. - 8:55 a.m. to 12:20 p.m., [Committee of the Whole](https://pub-missoula.escribemeetings.com/Meeting.aspx?Id=6accf5bc-735d-4305-9e4d-32e0290c21e1&Agenda=Agenda&lang=English&ref=missoula-commons.com): a domestic violence forum, referred by council member Gwen Jones. The agenda calls it informational only, with local experts and county and city staff presenting for community awareness. The county commissioners' schedule lists it as 9 a.m. to noon and shows Commissioner Slotnick attending. Open to the public, nothing being decided. - 1:15 p.m., [Housing, Redevelopment, and Community Programs](https://pub-missoula.escribemeetings.com/Meeting.aspx?Id=5403479c-3ed5-4efb-8f4d-a041d5a86e0d&Agenda=Agenda&lang=English&ref=missoula-commons.com): a vote on a $368,845 annual funding contract with Missoula Aging Services for fiscal year 2027, to support programs that promote the independence, dignity and health of older adults and the people who care for them. Tracy Pohndorf presents. - 1:45 p.m., [Public Works and Mobility](https://pub-missoula.escribemeetings.com/Meeting.aspx?Id=76923d34-438a-42ff-bec9-1f4336dce590&Agenda=Agenda&lang=English&ref=missoula-commons.com): the week's largest single number, a construction services agreement with MET Automation and Controls for the Phase 2 Water PLC Replacements Project, at a cost not to exceed $1,042,739.16\. PLCs are programmable logic controllers, the industrial computers that run equipment like pumps and valves; the contract document calls it a SCADA update. Logan McInnis presents. The committee also considers confirming the mayor's reappointment of James Crosby to the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Board through September 2029. - 2:15 p.m., [Climate, Conservation and Parks](https://pub-missoula.escribemeetings.com/Meeting.aspx?Id=d4364265-d4e7-4572-bcc6-8c38f4a1fcbf&Agenda=Agenda&lang=English&ref=missoula-commons.com): a vote on granting NorthWestern Energy an electric easement that includes parts of the Park on North Scott Street, subject to conditions in the easement agreement. Lucy Rummler presents, and the park's overall landscape plan is attached to the agenda. Parks staff then give an information-only update on 2026 recreation programs. The Budget and Finance, Land Use and Planning, and Public Safety, Health and Operations committees are not on this week's schedule. ### City Planning Commission 6 p.m., Council Chambers, 140 W. Pine St. (enter through the Missoula Redevelopment Agency doors), or on Teams. [Agenda](https://pub-missoula.escribemeetings.com/Meeting.aspx?Id=b3200fbc-ad73-4a00-8b19-28ca2d02f017&Agenda=Agenda&lang=English&ref=missoula-commons.com). Worth your evening if you live, work or own property along the North Reserve to Scott Street corridor. The agenda lists two items under communications and special presentations, not under public hearings: the Reserve to Scott Master Plan 2026 and related land use plan amendments, presented by Annie Gorski and Benjamin Brewer, and zoning amendments to certain properties within city limits related to that plan, presented by Brewer. In plain terms, Wednesday is the briefing, not the hearing. The city's [project schedule](https://www.engagemissoula.com/reserve-scott-master-plan-2026/widgets/122889/key%5Fdates?ref=missoula-commons.com) lists a Planning Commission public hearing for November 18 at 6 p.m. on the master plan, the land use plan amendments and the zoning amendments, with City Council adoption penciled in for December 7\. The commission is advisory; it recommends, and City Council makes the final call. The attached documents on the agenda page spell out which properties are affected, and there is a public comment period for non-agenda items near the start of the meeting. ### Missoula Housing Authority board 5:30 p.m., Missoula Housing Authority, 1235 34th St. [Board page and packet](https://www.missoulahousing.org/board-of-commissioners?ref=missoula-commons.com). The agenda says it in capital letters: no action items this month. After approving September's minutes the board hears reports, including a visit from Mayor Andrea Davis about Franklin Crossing and Midtown master planning, the hiring of the authority's first deputy director, and progress on the Wildflower Apartments acquisition and rehab, where demolition has started. The packet puts September occupancy at 92.77 percent, with 2,655 households on waiting lists and 990 Housing Choice Vouchers in use. Public comment on non-agenda items is three minutes per speaker. ### Two county committees canceled The county's Impact Fee Advisory Committee, which had been scheduled for 3:30 p.m., and the Big Sky Park Stewardship Committee, scheduled for 6 p.m., are both listed as canceled on the county's meeting portal. ## Thursday, October 22 ### Board of County Commissioners: public meeting canceled The fourth Thursday is normally one of the commissioners' 2 p.m. public meetings for land use, policy and hearings. This week's is listed as canceled on the commissioners' schedule, and it does not appear on the county's agenda portal at all. The schedule shows two of the three commissioners out of town that day, Commissioner Strohmaier in New Orleans and Commissioner Vero in Helena. ### Health boards not meeting this week The City-County Health Board, Water Quality District Board and Air Pollution Control Board meet on third Thursdays, which was October 15\. No meeting is expected this week. Missoula Public Health is at 406-258-3376 if you want to confirm. ## Friday, October 23 ### Missoula Redevelopment Agency board 10 a.m. to noon, Hal Fraser Conference Room, 140 W. Pine St., or on Teams. The board moved this meeting from its usual third-Thursday slot on October 15\. As of Sunday no agenda was posted on [eScribe](https://pub-missoula.escribemeetings.com/?ref=missoula-commons.com); the city calendar says agendas go up 48 hours before the meeting, so look for it Wednesday. MRA staff are at 406-552-6163\. The MRA board governs the city's urban renewal districts and tax increment spending, so when the agenda appears it's worth a look. ## Board of County Commissioners To sum up the county week: one voting meeting, Tuesday's 10 a.m. administrative meeting, and Thursday's public meeting canceled. The commissioners also record a podcast episode Monday afternoon and interview an applicant for the Food Policy Advisory Board on Tuesday. Their regular pattern is administrative meetings on Tuesdays at 10 a.m. and public meetings on the first, second and fourth Thursdays at 2 p.m.; the [commissioners' schedule page](https://www.missoulacounty.gov/departments/commissioners/commissioners-schedule/?ref=missoula-commons.com) is the place to confirm what's actually on. ## Around the county Missoula County Public Schools has no board of trustees meeting this week, but two committees meet Wednesday, October 21, at the district's administration building, 909 South Ave. W., Building A: the Board Policy Committee at 1 p.m. in the boardroom and the Full Insurance Committee at 4 p.m. On Thursday, October 22, the district lists a Public Education Confluence from 6 to 7:30 p.m. in the boardroom as a public meeting. The district's [meetings calendar](https://www.mcpsmt.org/our-district/public-meetings-calendar?ref=missoula-commons.com) had no agendas attached when we checked. The next regular trustees meeting is Tuesday, October 27, at 5 p.m. No neighborhood council holds a general meeting this week. Two leadership teams meet Tuesday: Upper Rattlesnake at 4 p.m. at Messiah Lutheran Church, 3718 Rattlesnake Dr., with chronic wasting disease in the deer population, the Energize Your Neighborhood grant program and spring general meeting planning on the agenda, and Heart of Missoula at 5 p.m. in the first-floor common area of the Missoula Public Library, 455 E. Main St., to talk over a Missoula Neighborhoods tree grant proposal. Both take public comment. Details are on the [city calendar](https://www.ci.missoula.mt.us/calendar.aspx?CID=0&month=10&view=list&year=2026&ref=missoula-commons.com). Mountain Line has no board or committee meetings this week; its board and Finance Committee next meet October 29\. The Missoula Conservation District met October 14 and has not posted a November date. The joint Local Emergency Planning Committee and Disaster Planning Committee met for its October quarterly meeting on October 13. ## How to weigh in For City Council and its Wednesday committees, open the agenda on [eScribe](https://pub-missoula.escribemeetings.com/?ref=missoula-commons.com), click the item and choose "leave comment," attend in person in Council Chambers at 140 W. Pine St., or join on Teams using the link in the agenda header. The call-in number is 406-384-6960, with the conference ID printed on each agenda; press \*5 to raise your hand. The City Clerk is at 406-552-6078\. If the water controls contract, the Aging Services funding or the park easement interest you, Wednesday's committee meetings are where the discussion happens; unanimous committee recommendations generally go to the council's consent agenda for a final vote. For the other city boards, the Bicycle and Pedestrian board, Planning Commission, MRA, Housing Authority and BID, use the time, place and comment rules in each meeting's own notice above. For the Reserve to Scott plan, Wednesday's Planning Commission meeting is a presentation, so comment there goes into the record but the public hearing is November 18\. The same eScribe comment button works for Planning Commission agendas. For Tuesday's county administrative meeting, you can speak in person in Room 206 or on Teams at the link on the agenda. There is time for public comment on items not on the agenda at the start of the department updates as well. You can also leave a voicemail for the commissioners at 406-258-4877, use the [contact form](https://www.missoulacounty.gov/departments/commissioners/contact-the-commissioners/?ref=missoula-commons.com), follow project pages at [Missoula County Voice](https://missoulacountyvoice.com/?ref=missoula-commons.com), or [subscribe to agenda emails](https://missoulacomt.portal.civicclerk.com/subscriptions?ref=missoula-commons.com). Clinton and Swan Valley residents can comment in person at their community council meetings; Clinton allows three minutes per person, with a comment period near the start and another at the end. If you want a say on whether Clinton pursues a road district, Tuesday is the early window. For the Transportation Policy Coordinating Committee and the Active Transportation Plan, the MPO office is at 406-552-6670 and its site is [missoulampo.com](https://www.missoulampo.com/?ref=missoula-commons.com). ## What's next Whatever Wednesday's council committees approve is likely to appear on the council's October 26 consent agenda, which posts on eScribe late Friday. Mountain Line's board meets Thursday, October 29, at noon, with its Finance Committee at 11 a.m., at 1221 Shakespeare St.; agendas post 48 hours ahead at [mountainline.com/meetings](https://mountainline.com/meetings/?ref=missoula-commons.com). The MCPS Board of Trustees meets Tuesday, October 27, at 5 p.m. On Reserve to Scott, the city's project schedule has the council setting a hearing date November 16, the Planning Commission public hearing November 18 at 6 p.m., and council adoption December 7, with a Roseburg Phase 2 annexation request riding along. The Food Policy Advisory Board and the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Board both return November 16, and the Clinton Community Council on November 17\. News coverage of the council's October proclamation described a second city-hosted domestic violence session on October 28; it was not yet on eScribe when we checked, so treat that date as unconfirmed.