Incumbent applies life lessons from dad

Flathead County Commissioner Joe Brenneman says he has no grand illusion that it will be easy to get re-elected for another six years.

He’s a Democrat, for starters, in predominantly Republican territory.

He’s made some difficult decisions on proposed developments, such as the North Shore Ranch, that he still stands by but have ended up in lawsuits against the county.

He’s been in the crosshairs of the American Dream Montana property-rights group that now wants the county growth policy thrown out.

So why does he want another term on the commission?

It has something to do with the lessons in life his father instilled in him and a work ethic honed through generations of farming in the Flathead.

“You do the best you can. That’s what my dad taught me,” the fourth-generation Creston farmer said. “And you do your best in all jobs, whether it’s at a fire scene [he’s a volunteer firefighter] or farming. Sometimes you want a different outcome, but it’s that background I come from.”

Brenneman goes against another Creston-area Democrat, Noel Gorton, in the June 8 primary election (absentee voting begins May 10).

The winner goes on to the November general election to faces the top Republican in a three-way primary race involving Howard Gipe, Pam Holmquist and Patrick Nickol.

Brenneman divided his accomplishments since 2005 into three broad categories: public safety, water quality and the work he’s done to make sure the county remains financially healthy.

He’s been heavily involved in getting the new 911 centralized dispatch center up and running. Brenneman joined the 911 board in January 2007 and remembers thinking by May of that year that he couldn’t stand it any more because nothing was getting done.

“Let’s get off dead-center,” he stressed at the time. “There were some pretty tense negotiation sessions.”

He credited Emergency Services Director Mark Peck with ultimately pulling the plan together with the collaborative work Peck did with the cities and county.

Brenneman has been very hands-on with the Northern Tier Interoperability Consortium that is establishing a new communications network to link law-enforcement and government agencies across Northern Montana.

“It’s a challenge. We’re trying to do something never done before,” he said. “We’ve been adamant that we don’t want the state telling us, ‘This is the radio system you’ll use,’ so it’s important that someone from the county be involved. Flathead County has gone from being on the tail end to being one of the leaders in implementing the new system.”

Brenneman is vice chairman of the interoperability governing body. That has meant attending meetings in Helena once a month, sometimes more often, but the payback to Flathead County already is sizable, he said.

A $4 million tower on Big Mountain and close to $1 million in radio equipment grants have been invested in the Flathead.

Water quality has been one of Brenneman’s hallmark projects as a commissioner.

“We have a tremendous treasure here that’s as pristine as any water on Earth,” he said. “We have a moral and economic obligation to keep the water passing through Flathead County as pristine as possible.”

Starting a Flathead County River Commission was Brenneman’s idea. He secured $90,000 in state grant funding that will enable the commission to develop a strategic plan for countywide wastewater treatment. For example, a bigger treatment facility for the entire North Valley may one day be more effective and cost-efficient, he said.

“Sometimes when municipalities are focused on just what they see, there can be tunnel vision,” Brenneman said, adding that the River Commission could provide a broader overview of water-treatment needs.

Brenneman also has pushed for a grant-funded stormwater treatment system for unincorporated Bigfork, where the final design is in place to treat Grand Avenue in its entirety.

“The people of Bigfork have really taken this on as something they want to do,” he said. “Lakeside is looking at a stormwater system, too, so now they’ll have a template available.”

Brenneman said he’s proud to have had a hand in maintaining the county’s healthy financial shape even as the economy here has faltered.

To that end he has pushed for consolidation that hasn’t always been popular, such as the recent attempt to consolidate the elected position of superintendent of schools with the Treasurer’s Office. That plan was discarded after heavy public opposition.

“I believe the commissioners should bring these ideas up,” he said. “To not ask the questions doesn’t serve the taxpayers well.”

Brenneman said he constantly strives for government efficiency.

Planning perhaps has been Brenneman’s biggest challenge, largely because he doesn’t back away from decisions he’s made. That includes the controversial North Shore Ranch project at the north end of Flathead Lake. Brenneman voted against the subdivision, the developers sued the county and the county had to pay a $1 million settlement.

In hindsight would he have voted differently?

“Absolutely not,” he said. “I’ll defend [that vote] to my last day in office. This has to do with the very essence of the quality of life here. If we give up on all of that, then we have in fact sold our soul to the devil.”

Brenneman maintained the North Shore Ranch property, located next to a wildlife preserve, is too environmentally important to develop.

Although Brenneman voted with the other commissioners recently not to renew Planning Director Jeff Harris’ contract past September, he stands behind Harris’ job performance and said “he’s made a tremendous contribution to the valley.”

The $10,000 spent by the county to investigate and exonerate Harris from a wide range of allegations by American Dream Montana and other property owners, is proof there was no wrongdoing, Brenneman said.

“It is frustrating to be involved with people who don’t care how they cheat and lie and make stuff up,” he said. “In the end, most people have a sense of fairness. Those are the people I listen to.”

Features editor Lynnette Hintze may be reached at 758-4421 or by e-mail at lhintze@dailyinterlake.com.