by Travis Mateer
Have you ever spent $800,000 dollars on something then changed your mind about it? If you live in possibly the stupidest municipality in America–which appears at this point to be Missoula–that is what might happen with one of the stupidest pieces of infrastructure this stupid town has ever produced: the bridge to nowhere.
I first started writing about this project in 2019, when the cost was “only” a half million bucks. Why was this bridge supposedly necessary? Here’s the quote (emphasis mine):
The project aims to protect and enhance the recreational value of the island. Its natural setting includes views, river sounds, birds and small wildlife, according to a news release.
Did this project succeed in its stated goal? NOPE! In fact, the exact opposite of “protection” happened, just like I suspected it would, because creating “access” just made it easier for the drug addicts to entrench themselves deeper into this plot of city land. Is that why “concept 3” suggests REMOVING this access?
The third concept also includes rapids and enhances trail connections. However, it removes the two bridges that serve Broadway Island, reserving it primarily as urban habitat. The proposal also deepens the irrigation ditch and creates a new surfing wave.
Yes, that’s right, improvements that cost HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS of dollars in public investment might now just have to be “removed”. And here is my the skepticism I expressed four years ago, when this project was only a cool half million dollars:
From conversations I have had with Morgan Valiant, the Parks and Rec. lead on this project, the city didn’t know what it was getting itself into when they got this parcel of land, and not because of any of its natural features, but because of the human problem.
I did plenty of outreach in this area after the Poverello Center opened its new center on West Broadway, so I am quite familiar with the terrain and with the hope articulated by Parks and Rec. that building a bridge would somehow encourage a different kind of use of this area.
Did I think spending a half million dollars in public money on a bridge across the street from the homeless shelter was going to somehow bring in an barrage of dog walkers to run out the meth users? Hell no. But I don’t get to direct public money to projects that any bank would laugh at funding.
In another article that highlights how stupid our leadership in Missoula is, here’s a MAN who works for the organization Montana WOMEN Votes telling Mayor Davis and her cadre of dumb virtue-signalers how much they suck with the urban camping charade (emphasis mine):
The meeting – which was to set a public hearing to amend the ordinance had hours of public comment. In a unique turn of events – the power went out in downtown Missoula putting a pause on the usual proceedings. As soon as the power came back – the comments continued.
“When you’re faced with an option you are faced with two options – you can either try or you can do nothing,” said John Rhoades, a representative for Montana Women Vote. “This council has found a mystical third option of making things worse.”
Yep, things are NOT improving in this stupid town, and perhaps that’s because the people who make decisions are THEMSELVES stupid? I think that is a distinct possibility, and one I will CONTINUE to write about since I was assured yesterday by a judge that the first amendment DOES INDEED apply to me and my citizen journalism.
If you would like to support that citizen journalism, Travis’ Impact Fund (TIF) is the way to do it, and any little bit helps.
Thanks for reading!