It’s difficult to know yet how much the summer fire season affected the local economy, but there’s no doubt many businesses were impacted by the heavy smoke that kept people indoors for days on end over the past several weeks.

Notably, the Izaak Walton Inn at Essex was forced to shut down for several days during a mandatory evacuation as the Sheep Fire flared up. We’re glad to hear the historic hotel has reopened and is getting back to business as usual, welcoming guests who want to experience the railroad history around which the inn is built.

And we’re certainly grateful that Essex was spared from the fire. It’s a beautiful area, treasured by locals and visitors alike. Now that the smoke has cleared — we hope for good — there’s plenty of time to get out and about and enjoy the fall season.

FHS building for future

Ground was broken earlier this week for a construction project that is the centerpiece of a new addition to the Flathead High School curriculum: home building.

About 30 students will construct an 1,800-square-foot, two-story home at 663 Corporate Drive in Kalispell.

The school and several business partners are combining efforts for the project, with students in two house-construction courses at Flathead doing the work and learning valuable job skills at the same time.

This is a noteworthy effort to train local students in the construction trade, which is facing a worker shortage in the future.

Statue gets reprieve again

Once again we have to give thanks for a court’s common-sense ruling that allows the Jesus statue to remain at the top of the Big Mountain where it has stood peacefully for more than 60 years.

This time, a panel of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals confirmed Judge Dana Christensen’s ruling that the statue is a secular, not a religious symbol, and that in any case, it cannot possibly represent the “establishment” of a religion and therefore is not unconstitutional.

Unfortunately, that’s not going to stop the zealots from the Freedom From Religion Foundation, who have announced they will appeal. We can only hope that the notoriously liberal 9th Circuit Court will acknowledge the wisdom of its three-judge panel and send the foundation home with legal bills to pay.