Will we have to bypass the bypass?

The ongoing Kalispell bypass project has become quite a head scratcher to contemplate. Because about $8 million in funding suddenly became available, the northernmost section of the multi-phased U.S. 93 Alternative Route is certain to proceed starting this fall, whether it will be good for the community or not.

The next phase will connect Reserve Loop Road to U.S. 93 and West Reserve, an already busy intersection that is certain to become a headache-inducing malfunction junction.

But there are also uncertainties — the biggest being the question of whether the alternative route will serve the purpose of bypassing anything. 

Let’s face it, the bypass concept took decades to come to fruition, and the design that’s being implemented is now behind the development that has occurred and will continue to happen on the north side of town. 

Currently, the southern part of the bypass from U.S. 93 to U.S. 2 West amounts to half of a bypass. But when the northern half is complete (no telling how long additional phases will take) it will be funneling motorists right into the busiest commercial area in the entire Flathead Valley.

We have to wonder if the northern end will be used or avoided in years to come.  

Job  fair is rousing success

The Flathead Valley is noted for the quality of its work force, and on Thursday that quality was joined by quantity as more than 900 people turned out for the 2013 job fair.

Tracy Wessel of Integrated Security Solutions, one of 50 employers participating in the fair, summed it up well when she said, “There were people who were enormously overqualified.”

Laura Christiana of inDimension3 also complimented the applicant pool, saying, “If I had 10 openings, I could fill them all.”

This is the first Flathead Valley Job Fair since 2009, because of the recession that hit so hard here, but all signs now point to a full recovery in the months ahead, and we would bet that the 2014 Flathead Valley Job Fair will be even better!

Editorials represent the majority opinion of the Daily Inter Lake’s editorial board.