Month: May 2024

by Travis Mateer

During my initial investigation of this UNAUTHORIZED sign removal and subsequent theft, I’ve determined that my concerns regarding this piece of special geography on the Hip Strip in Missoula should be going to Cole Bergquist.

Ok then. Here’s the letter:

***

Dear Cole,

It has come to my attention that my investigative attention toward your former partner, the White Lion, has been for naught because it was YOU I should have been seeking the whole time.

Who am I? There should be a simple answer to that question, but these are NOT simple times, so lets just say I’m a Renaissance Man with many talents aimed at the simple goal of helping protect my community from societal collapse, which is currently ongoing.

Did you know, Cole, that vandalism is now occurring on your Belle LLC property where once upon a time a newspaper was produced? Let’s put aside for the moment the irony that an unpaid local journalist with a box-house on wheels is telling you this from the state where you played football but do not live because I’m not reaching out to you in the capacity of a journalist anymore. No, I’m a TRASH ALCHEMIST, and I’ve been looking for a special place to do my work, like conducting narrative experiments with hand-puppets and building plastic brick masterpieces.

When I say “vandalism” I do not include the sign I made with two pieces of wood and two screws, which I regret to inform you has been STOLEN! Who could have perpetrated such an UNcreative crime? That, Cole, is what I’m currently investigating.

Before I get to results of the first day of my investigation, I should probably explain what the sign said, and why I found it necessary to create and affix it to the rock and metal that describes what no longer exists at this vacant location on the Hip Strip.

The sign said TAAAAAZ, which stands for the Trash Alchemist Awesome And Amazing Autonomous Zone, and there is absolutely no value, just my curiosity, along with some questions, that I’d like to pose to whomever put forth the effort to UNscrew what I screwed with such joy, hope, and optimism.

Question 1—does your skillset include placing trash items in trash bags? If so, I could use some help cleaning up this community!

Question 2—do you have a lawn mower? There’s some grass that needs mowing!

Question 3—would you like a free ticket to the first show of the Broken Windows Theory as told by hand-puppets?

Question 4—how many more years will this property attract the entropic power of blight like a blackhole sucking weaker matter into its annihilating void of nothingness?

These are the kind of questions I’ll be pondering as I stand on the back of my open tailgate gazing at the few storefronts left inviting customers to engage in commerce, like the weed shop that finally replaced my favorite bead store (Bathing Beauties), Betty’s Divine, and the obnoxious declaration of GILD where the Crystal Theater once stood.

At Float (where I enjoyed time in one of their sensory-deprivation tanks back when I had money) I learned that it appeared to be high schoolers who got arrested for acts of hooliganism on the property of Belle LLC, but I did NOT learn who removed my sign.

I continued making inquiries downtown, including at your office, where your assistant, Jeremy, kindly listened to my tales of blight and fright, but so far the results of my investigation have been disappointing. Like so many things happening in this town, which includes disposing of human beings like trash, it appears like this troubling behavior might never be properly addressed.

Anyway, I hope the weather is nice in California, because it’s COLD in Montana, and when it’s cold my fingers get sore, which makes constructing scenes with plastic bricks VERY difficult.

Thank you for your time!

Sincerely,

Your Trustworthy Parking Lot Sovereign, the TRASH ALCHEMIST!

by Travis Mateer

Last Saturday, while seasonal markets in downtown Missoula opened for the first time, a Native woman was doing some classic ranting about drug trafficking, Poverello staff, and our Attorney General, Austin Knudsen. Here’s the video clip:

Hearing about our AG from this lady reminded me of that article about a suspect going from Shoshone County into Mineral County recently. From the link (emphasis mine):

The Shoshone County Sheriff’s Office attempted a traffic stop on eastbound Interstate 90 at approximately milepost 59 Sunday afternoon.

The suspect vehicle didn’t stop and continued to drive east, crossing the state line.

Officials say the driver left the suspect vehicle after they drove off the road and crashed into the trees and then fled into the woods, according to Mineral County Sheriff Ryan Funke.

According to Funke the suspect is not believed to be in the woods anymore but confirmed they do not pose a threat to public safety.

Ok, Sheriff Funke, I’ll ask the obvious question: WHERE IS THE SUSPECT? And how can you determine that this suspect, who doesn’t appear to be caught yet, poses no threat to the public?

Those kind of questions seem important to ask, but I’m not sure readers of this blog actually see the value of non-conventional media doing the asking, since I received exactly ZERO donations during the period of time known as Missoula Gives.

Oh well, I know what I’m documenting in this town is important, so I’ll keep doing it, regardless of how little this community supports it. And I’ll do it with STYLE!

If you feel guilty because you read all this great content for free from the comfort of your housing while I prepare to live in my Trash Truck, then alleviate that guilt by supporting Travis’ Impact Fund (TIF). I guarantee you won’t regret it!

Thanks for reading!

by Travis Mateer

I took this picture earlier today after walking from where I was parked to where all the sirens were responding. The path of this south-bound truck down the embankment of the north end of the Orange Street bridge wasn’t as obvious as you might think, and from the initial response, I don’t think anyone was seriously injured.

Unfortunately the motorcyclist involved in the accident over the weekend doesn’t appear to have been as lucky was the driver of this truck was. Is this just your typical spring-time craziness taking hold, or could something else be swirling in the ether?

Since I don’t shy away from engaging in wild speculation from time to time, I’ll throw out a few data points that make me go hmmmmm, like the FREE concert series happening at the Top Hat, owned by Nick Checota.

Maybe it’s the fact this river-bound truck drove off the road where Checota’s dream of building THE DRIFT once seemed viable, or maybe it’s my current work exposing a different developer, that has me thinking weird thoughts about what it takes to pull off large development projects, like, is there a non-corporeal constituency that must be appeased?

Last October I wrote a post with a question for the title, and the question was this: Does Nick Checota Have A Reason To Be Celebratory?

While those free concerts are still happening, NOTHING continues to happen in terms of development at the riverfront property known as the Fox Theater Site, despite a story two years ago about renewed interest. From the link:

A new group of developers is looking at taking on the development of Missoula’s Riverfront Triangle, although the proposal is still in the very early stage.

City leaders have been working with a host of developers over the past three decades, hoping to find someone interested in the old “Fox Theater” site along the Clark Fork River west of Orange Street. But it seems like the ideas, while often grand, always seem to run into problems.

Yes, and the local uprising this local documentary covers in detail was ONE of those problems.

Upstream of today’s accident the TAAAAAZ 2.0 is going great! When the weather gets nicer, I may try to show that documentary, and I’m also working on a puppet show. More on that later this week.

Thanks for reading!

UPDATE: I just went to post this on Facebook and saw footage of the truck trying to pass another truck aggressively, then going off the road like an idiot. I have seen A LOT of aggressive driving in this town, stay safe out there!

by Travis Mateer

To outright say a white man like myself should publicly claim to have pride in one’s Caucasian hue is a real David Duke thing to say, but since I just finished watching a Spike Lee joint about a BlacKkKlansman, well, I was reminded that with the RIGHT white man, you can do anything!

You mean like coming to the rescue of a struggling ALPHA who probably thinks LION when the word PRIDE comes up?

Words are fun, but taking action can be EVEN MORE fun–even if that action is picking up trash from an over-flowing trash can, which I documented in yesterday’s post. Is this because I take PRIDE in my community? Is that allowed? Or is this the only kind of PRIDE Missoula will tolerate?

I think flags are cool, but until I have something to fly from behind the hedge, a few pieces of wood and screws purchased for a dollar from Home Resource will have to do the trick. If Aaron Wagner’s spirit animal is Andrew Tate, then mine is MacGyver!

The previous blanket-sign didn’t seem to work very well, so I’m glad I TOOK ACTION and found a fix. I’d also like to find, and train, some helpers, and those helpers will need a name, something to identify with. Also, it’s important to be COOL, and based on my study of the occult, kool kids like to put K’s in things where they weren’t previously, like MAGICK!

I hope the Kraigslist kreativity I honed at the University of Montana will ensure I find the RIGHT kind of rekruits for my klub!

If I’m able to stand-up a trash battalion to secure this property in Missoula, perhaps our struggling alpha, and his pals at AXIA, will leverage their Brandan Fugal power to revive the condo dreams for Missoula’s riverfront.

I don’t really care if the real estate juice of Brandan Fugal works out or not because all these dudes are playing developer in Utah, far from the nice Hip Strip view I have from the back of my tailgate. Isn’t this a nice view?

If I start getting recruits this week my first test will be to see how they respond to the kind of language that would put an elected official on a fainting couch (if we still used that kind of practical furniture).

The problem, though, is that I don’t have a piece of furniture like this to tell someone to go and have a time out in order to THINK about why they’re triggered, so I guess I’ll have to get creative. Since I found a sign within my TAAAAAZ that has already been modified, it was suggested that I use the spot around this sign for a time-out spot. Let’s call it the KONCENTRATION KORNER!

What would Wags and his fellow ALPHAS think of all this? I don’t know, but maybe I’ll get a chance to actually TALK to this developer about his plans for this piece of PREMIER real estate in Missoula, Montana. What do you say, guys?

If you appreciate my unique style and approach to determining what’s happening in my community, then please consider donating to Travis’ Impact Fund (TIF). Running an autonomous zone takes RESOURCES, and with your help, this spot will be TRANSFORMED!

Thanks for reading!

by Travis Mateer

It’s official, on May 4th my TAAAAAZ 2.0 established autonomy over the parking lot of the former Missoulian building with some signs and my first benevolent act, which was dealing with the TRASH EMERGENCY I discovered after confirming this property was being vandalized by local scoundrels.

For some quick history, it was November of 2021 when Aaron Wagner and Cole Berquist announced their purchase of this property for development. Here’s an excerpt from that distant time when Wags Capital still had that ALPHA essence wafting from Lehi County, Utah (emphasis mine):

“The plans for the building, obviously that will be demolished at some point,” said Aaron Wagner.

The Missoula City Council approved a rezoning request for the property in early October by a 9-to-1 vote.

“I think it’s impossible as an elected official to not see the sale of the building with our local paper and have a great degree of sadness about that,” Missoula City Council member Bryan von Lossberg said at the time.

The river facing property is deemed premier real estate on the Hip Strip.

Premier property, you say? Too bad the property owner can’t even manage to empty his own little trash can. Cool pyramid topper, though!

Don’t worry, my trash removal skills are ALSO premier, which is why the lone hornet and spiky foliage didn’t deter me from immediately improving my TAAAAAZ!

Another factor that makes me well-suited to respond to trash emergencies is the neat hat I acquired in an antique store during one of my three crazy loops around America. Not only is it the right color, but the number also makes the Virgo in me smile.

On a more serious and credible note, in another life my name DID appear alongside the influencers of Missoula as I did my Homeless Outreach Team thing for the narrative controllers. To back up this claim, here’s a link and a screenshot of the minutes from a Mayor’s Downtown Advisory Commission meeting I attended as a member in February of 2016:

See all those VERY IMPORTANT names? It’s weird seeing those names from my current vantage point, considering one of them is the prosecuting attorney in the case that resulted in my arrest on Tax Day.

Another name I’ll point out is the Municipal Court judge at the time, Kathleen Jenks, who CAME TO ME for advice on Glen Harley Stephens, who died last year on the sidewalk outside the door to the County Commissioners offices. Here’s a link to my post about searching for his next of kin in Salmon, Idaho.

The name that REALLY bolsters my bonafides as an emergency TRASH responder is Rob Scheben, the former Crime Prevention Officer for Missoula PD. Rob helped me see elements of situational awareness and how it relates to physical space that gave me an interesting lens in which to see my surroundings. This lens was a great tool when I was assisting downtown businesses with taking some basic steps to make their businesses less likely to be places trashed by transients, like adding motion-sensing lights, or trimming back hedges.

My new neighbors seemed to appreciate my freely-given insights on Saturday as I rollerbladed into their works spaces handing out my card. I specifically told them about the recent break-ins at the Missoulian building, and my worry that the prevalence of people I’ve seen cutting through this property (from the river trail to 4th street and Higgins) don’t understand that poor lighting, the cover of trees, and the years-long vacancy of this property make it a PRIME area for shady shit happening, which the over-flowing trash clearly and its contents cleared indicated.

Yep, not only do I pick up trash, I also ANALYZE it, and what you are seeing is a scrap of medical paperwork, most likely discharge instructions from St. Pats, and a container that once held a legally-purchased joint of Cannabis.

Do you now see why I simply could NOT ignore this TRASH EMERGENCY and was essentially FORCED to establish another autonomous zone? If Aaron Wagner has a better idea for maintaining the property still owned by Belle LLC, all he has to do is give me a call. I’ll even publicly provide my phone number (406-529-1655) so he has NO excuse for continuing to ignore my inquiries about his prowess as an alpha developer trying to build condos on this PREMIER piece of riverfront property.

For more of my reporting on this development, here are some posts to check out:

Embracing The Tin Foil Hat While Former Football Players Further Gentrify Zoom Town (November 7th, 2021)

City Council Member Daniel Carlino Is Hopping On The Citizen Anger Over Riverfront Development, But To What End? (November 30th, 2021)

Getting To Know Wags Capital While Speculating On A Brewing Oligarch Battle (December 2nd, 2021)

Is Corporate Media In Strategic Retreat From The Public? (August 8th, 2022)

Wags Hands Off To Bergquist To Build The Archie, The Belle, And The Cam (September 21st, 2022)

Missoula Needs More Housing, But The White Lion Sleeps Tonight (January 5th, 2024)

If you appreciate my independent GONZO-styled journalism, then please consider supporting Travis’ Impact Fund (TIF).

And, as always, thanks for reading!