New green-box garbage site holiday closures approved

Green-box garbage collection sites throughout Flathead County will be closed on four additional holidays from now on, the county Solid Waste District board decided last week.

The container sites historically have been closed only on Thanksgiving and Christmas, but otherwise have operated 363 days a year. Starting May 29, Memorial Day, the sites will also be closed on Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day and New Year’s Day, according to county public works Director Dave Prunty.

The green boxes will continue to be open on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Presidents Day and Columbus Day because “most of the world works through those days,” Prunty told the county commissioners on Wednesday.

While the additional holiday closures were prompted by county employees who service the container sites wanting to have those days off, the county also will save about $11,200 by closing for the four additional holidays.

Prunty said he researched other container facilities in Montana about their hours of operations and found “they’re all over the place.” Gallatin County is closed on the six holidays Flathead County now has chosen to recognize for closure, and also is closed Sundays.

Lake and Lewis and Clark counties are closed on all holidays, while the private landfill in Great Falls closes only for Christmas and New Year’s Day.

“It’s all over the place,” Prunty said.

He said the Solid Waste District will post notices at the green-box sites prior to the first holiday closure on Memorial Day and will conduct a public education campaign to make sure all county residents are informed.

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