by Travis Mateer

Last night, while I waited for the new format that places public comment on NON-agenda items near the end of City Council business on Monday evenings, I read about the “mysterious” man cleaning up homeless trash along West Broadway.

The mysterious identity of who is doing an unauthorized cleanup is only a mystery to the Missoulian’s David Erickson, who got embarrassingly shown up by NBC Montana on the same day his reporting posted.

First, the Missoulian (emphasis mine):

There aren’t a lot of facts about the situation available, but apparently a mysterious private group or solitary citizen spent the last few days removing trash and people’s valued belongings from the West Broadway island area and piling it on the public sidewalk nearby.

That has caused a headache for the city, because it has pre-empted an official city cleanup scheduled for this Thursday, created a hazardous situation for city workers and robbed community members living unsheltered of their private property in some instances.

Facts aren’t available? Isn’t your job to GO OUT AND GET THEM, Dave? Because NBC Montana didn’t seem to have any trouble finding the individual and–GASP!–interviewing him! And here’s his resolve to KEEP DOING what he’s doing, even if it results in citations and fines (emphasis mine):

Tollefson grew up in Missoula, and he’s never seen it like this before, so he did what he thought was right.

In late February, he took it upon himself to start cleaning the bank of the river — spending his time off from work to tidy up the place he loves.

“There has to be a solution, man,” Tollefson said. “I just don’t think that giving them syringes and clothing and food and watching it all end up in the river is the solution.”

When he started cleaning, he placed the trash where everyone could see it — on the sidewalk — reminding others that just because it’s out of sight doesn’t mean it should be out of mind. That’s when he got in a little trouble.

In early March, Tollefson received a citation from the city for blocking the sidewalks. He said police showed up and questioned his motives.

“I said, ‘Are you going to take me to jail for picking up garbage?’” Tollefson said.

But the citation didn’t deter him. Now he’s just strategic about where he’s placing the debris.

Isn’t this something? It’s especially galling to read about this police response when you realize that Missoula police were much less concerned about issuing citations when an open fire pit of burning homeless trash started exploding in January.

Before making my comment, I had to listen to a couple who have been complaining about their sidewalk assessment since 2018, when they used their relationship with Mayor John Engen to stop the first attempt to bring sidewalks to their neighborhood. For some context about this sidewalk controversy, check out the following posts:

Political Retaliation (December 8th, 2019)

Shoving Sidewalk Costs On Homeowners While Rewarding Engen Loyalists With TIF Handouts Gives Daniel Carlino Cover To Keep Going (March 30th, 2022)

Who Is Gonna Care About Your Sidewalk Complaining Now? (November 29th, 2023)

Since I know BOTH these complainers, I can say they BOTH deserve to eat this cost. Why? Because Kathleen Kimble got her paychecks (when she worked) from the narrative controllers at the Missoulian, and William Fleischman, aka “Problembear“, got his paychecks from driving a public bus (when he worked), and he’s STILL working on electing Democrats in Montana, so my suggestion to them is this: pay for the policies your party is pushing on the rest of us and SHUT THE FUCK UP!

Around 7:30pm, after this couple used up more than 6 minutes of combined time for their complain campaign, I finally got my opportunity to comment, though I did so over the phone. Here it is:

In my comment I encourage our officials to KEEP IT UP because their actions will ensure a vigorous swing of the pendulum as the public slowly realizes how absurd and corrosive our leadership has become.

Last spring I launched Travis’ Impact Fund (TIF) to specifically address the negative community impact of “urban camping” because I don’t just complain, I take action, and I do so even if it costs my modest bank account four figures to accomplish. The result? See for yourself:

AA#1-Travis’ Impact Fund’s First Report! (March 29th, 2023)

AA#2-From North Russell To Camper Fire (March 31st, 2023)

AA#3-From Kim Williams Trail To North Hellgate (April 6th, 2023)

AA#4-From West Broadway Island To Silver Park (April 10th, 2023)

AA#5-Houseless Contact Conversations Plus Bonner And East Broadway (April 12th, 2023)

AA#6-Yoke’s To Southside Road And More (April 14th, 2023)

AA#7-The Meth Den Clean-Up That Synchronistically Culminated With A Press Conference On Homeless Camps (April 27th, 2023)

The Meth Den, Homeless Camp Clean Up Video I Spent $1,200 Dollars To Make Because Someone Needs To Step Up And Get Shit Done! (April 27th, 2023)

Stupid Trash Wars, A Political Non-Profit Pretender, And Me Showing Everyone How To Actually Get Shit Done! (June 21st, 2023)

That’s right, my efforts removed 2.84 tons of trash from JUST ONE SITE before spring runoff put this disgusting mess into our prized river. You’re welcome.

Is it frustrating to warn about shit happening, then having to watch what I’ve been warning about materialize? Fuck yes it’s frustrating, but I can tell you from direct experience that TAKING ACTION is very gratifying, and the grassroots collaborating that emerged last spring looks like it might continue.

If you’re tired of watching the bullshit, stay tuned here for opportunities to DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT. We might even manage to have some fun!

Thanks for reading!