Watchdog group restarts with new board and campaign
After a funding shortfall forced Citizens for a Better Flathead to temporarily suspend operations in August, the organization on Friday announced it’s back in action with a new board of directors, a new office and a year-end fundraising campaign with the goal of hiring a new director.
“We’re back!” new Citizens Board Co-Chair Lindsey Hromadka said in a press release, adding, “Our new board is excited and committed to continuing the 28-year legacy of Citizens for a Better Flathead as a watchdog and leadership voice at the forefront of planning decisions that are shaping the Flathead’s future.
“We look forward to our continued work with neighborhoods and residents across the valley and to helping them have a strong and effective voice in critical planning decisions impacting the character of the valley’s neighborhoods and towns, the retention and viability of local agricultural lands, and issues from water quality to sustainable development and the opportunity to find local solutions to challenges of climate change,” Hromadka said.
Longtime Citizens Executive Director Mayre Flowers, who had retired from her position in 2017, is stepping up again to serve as co-chair of the new board.
Flowers said the decision in late August by the former board to shutter the operation because of a lack of funding caught longtime supporters as a surprise.
“Sustaining the work of nonprofits in our community is always a challenge, but our new board is rising to this challenge, recognizing that the need for active community involvement in decisions shaping how our valley grows is more critical now than ever,” Flowers said. “For CBF it has never been a question of will or should we grow, but rather how should we grow.”
In addition to Flowers and Hromodka as co-chairpersons, the board includes Diane Taylor-Mahnke of Whitefish as secretary, Susan Cahill of Kalispell as treasurer, along with Erin Flaherty of Whitefish and Rod McIver of Kalispell as board members.
Since 1992, the watchdog organization has focused on addressing various challenges that rapid growth has brought to the Flathead. In addition to encouraging public participation in “planning for the future of the Flathead,” the organization ran two programs that sought to promote sustainability — the WasteNot Project and Go Local Flathead. The organization also has been involved in litigation regarding land-use planning decisions.
Citizens’ new office is located above Rocky Mountain Outfitters at 135 S. Main St. in Kalispell. There will be no fixed office hours until new staff is hired, but tax-deductible donations can be mailed to Citizens for a Better Flathead, P.O. Box 2198, Kalispell, MT 59903.
Those interested in getting more involved with the work of the organization or volunteering in any capacity can reach the board by emailing Mayre@Flatheadcitizens.org or you may leave a message on the office phone at 406-756-8993.