Nearly 50 businesses and individuals in the Flathead Valley that rely heavily on Glacier National Park visitation have signed a letter asking the governor and others to consider lifting the 14-day quarantine requirement for out-of-state visitors so they may recreate.

The letter is addressed to Glacier National Park Superintendent Jeff Mow, Gov. Steve Bullock and the Flathead County Sheriff’s Office. The letter signers include Glacier Raft Company, the Crown of the Continent Discovery Center, state Sen. Dee Brown, R-Hungry Horse, the Flathead Convention and Visitor Bureau, North Forty Resort and Big Sky Electric.

According to Jeff Baldelli, a co-owner of Glacier Raft Company who crafted the letter and gathered signatures, he sent out a “mass email to various businesses and associations,” and asked that recipients pass it along to others for signing consideration. Baldelli said it’s possible the letter didn’t make it to everyone.

A total of 46 businesses and associations signed the letter, which will be printed in the Daily Inter Lake on Sunday. However, Baldelli said “a number of people” emailed after the letter was sent, requesting their signatures and affiliated businesses be added as well.

“We have often heard you say that you view us as your business partners, and we need your help now more than ever,” the letter states. “The reality is most of our businesses are already down in revenue 40%-60% and we expect these numbers to get worse. The cancellations are coming in droves and for the businesses and their employees who depend on this revenue for their livelihood, it is devastating,” the letter stated.

Last June, the National Park Service released a report for the 2018 season showing visitors spent more than $344 million in communities near Glacier Park. The spending supported 5,230 jobs as well.

But it is currently unclear how successful the upcoming season will be, given various social distancing recommendations and guidelines. The letter points specifically to Gov. Bullock’s requirement that visitors quarantine for two weeks upon arrival in the state in order to stop any spread of the novel coronavirus.

“Who is going to travel to Montana only to sit in their hotel or cabin once they arrive at their destination?” the letter states. “If it [the quarantine requirement] is still in effect come June or July, it would especially kill the possibility of visitation for out-of-state visitors.”

The letter also requests Bullock, Mow and law enforcement provide a more definitive time-line for reopening the park. According to the current plan for reopening Montana post outbreak, the park won’t be allowed to open to visitors until Phase 3 — the starting date for which has yet to be announced.

According to the letter, “it is imperative that Park resources are prioritized to get the Going-to-the-Sun Road open as soon as possible and make other social distancing options available first so we can have a draw for the public. The sooner the Park gives the public positive indications that they will be opening along with a more definitive timeline, the better the chance the local economy will have to weather this storm.”

In a recent interview, Mow told the Daily Inter Lake he hopes Phase 3 will occur sometime in June and also emphasized he had been speaking with local businesses in the valley and “heard loud and clear” their requests regarding the Going-to-the-Sun Road. He said it is likely park operations will start back up on a layer-by-layer basis with access to the famous Going-to-the-Sun Road being his top priority.

However, in response to the letter, Mow reiterated on Tuesday he had “been instructed not to move forward with reopening the park” until the state, Flathead City-County Health Department and tribes were on board.

“I know how hard it is for businesses when they don’t have a precise date, but quite honestly there are very few of the large national parks that currently know the date for when they are reopening,” Mow said. “These are unprecedented times that pose unprecedented challenges.”

Kianna Gardner can be reached at 758-4407 or kgardner@dailyinterlake.com