2025, the year of DOGE and growth

Here are some of the more memorable local stories from 2025 that impacted Columbia Falls and Glacier National Park.

DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency) cuts to the federal workforce hit home. Commandeered by businessman Elon Musk (an on-again-off again friend of President Donald Trump), both Glacier National Park and the Hungry Horse-Glacier View District of the Flathead National Forest saw about a 25% cut in permanent staffing and the Forest Service in general saw drastic cuts to jobs that supported the backcountry, most notably trail crews. Glacier has several open positions that it’s not allowed to fill as there continues to be a moratorium on permanent hires, though it has been able to hire plenty of seasonals within its budgetary constraints, which have basically been flat for several years.

Growth continued to grab headlines in 2025 and 2026 promises to be even busier in Columbia Falls. One of the biggest takeaways from a housing study was the large gap between what houses cost and what people can afford to either rent or buy. The study found that the current median sale price of homes in the Columbia Falls area was $575,000, which is 85% higher than in 2019, when it was $310,000. Homes below $300,000 made up 48% of sales just five years ago. Last year, just 7%.

Meanwhile, most working families, the study found, can afford a house that’s about $250,000-$400,000, with $500,000 being the upper end at current interest rates.

Still, there appears to be plenty of demand and developers once again proposed homes east of the Flathead River and developer Mick Ruis has plans for 700-plus units on the old Columbia Falls Aluminum Co. property. The problem for the city is whether its sewage treatment system can handle the new growth without expensive upgrades.

On the CFAC cleanup front, the company and the EPA announced another round of tests that happened this fall. After a year of planning and engineering, plans to build a slurry wall around leaking landfills (Ruis did not buy those) should come in 2027, company officials said. The site was first listed as a Superfund site in 2016.

A final comprehensive river management plan for the three forks of the Flathead River is expected in 2026 if the Forest Service can hold true to its schedule. After receiving more than 1,200 comments on a proposed action for the three forks, most people wanted more river protections, not less. The Forest Service is planning on a mandatory, but free permit systems for some stretches of river in the 219-mile system.

In city news, Columbia Falls hired a new city manager in retired Navy Veteran Capt. Eric Hanks. Hanks has done a commendable job in his first six months on the job, Mayor Don Barnhart noted. Barnhart won his fifth term as mayor unopposed in the November election. It took the city three searches to find the right person for the manager post.

In school news, voters overwhelmingly voted against a $84.4 million bond proposal to remodel the high school. They did, however, approve a $105 million bond to build a new county jail. The jail’s impact to taxes, however, was about $80.66 for a home assessed for $600,000, while the school bond would have had a tax impact of $498 a year for the duration of the bond for a $600,000 home.

In Glacier Park news, Superintendent David Roemer said the plan for 2026 is to not have a reservation system for vehicles, though the park would have a 3 hour parking limit at Logan Pass and plans on instituting an early morning shuttle to get people up to the pass so they can have access to the popular Highline Trail. Even with a reservation system, Glacier saw more than 3 million visitors again in 2025, despite an unusually  soggy July.

Having said that, one of the most-read stories online was the tale of a 34-year-old female hiker was injured by a “brown colored bear” on Wednesday, Aug. 27 at approximately 3:15 p.m. at Lake Janet in Glacier National Park. The hiking party of two was hiking westbound near the lake when a “medium brown colored bear” with two cubs charged out of the brush, toward the woman, Glacier officials said. The woman dove off the trail, while covering her head. The bear swiped at her, injuring her shoulder and arm. As this was happening, her hiking partner deployed bear spray, causing the bear to immediately run away.

They were able to use an InReach satellite device to call for help and the ALERT helicopter flew the woman to the hospital for treatment of her injuries. Her name was not released. 

No action was taken against the bear, as they area was very brushy and it was deemed a surprise encounter.

In Glacier National Park mountain goat news, after examining years of data collected by citizen scientists coupled with a supporting DNA study, biologists surmised that the park’s iconic mountain goat population had dropped about 42%. Having said that, they estimated there were still about 1,000 mountain goats in Glacier. The animals, which are adapted to snow and cold weather, were suffering due to climate change in many areas; from the loss of habitat due to encroaching forests in meadows they once grazed, to lack of snow and ice, which not only keeps them cool, but keeps biting insects at bay.  They were considered all but non-existent in Glacier’s Livingston Range.

And the year ended with a bang on the weather front, as wind storms and heavy rain lashed the area. Lincoln County saw flooding that washed out several bridges and in the Flathead, high winds toppled thousands of trees as warm weather brought rain instead of snow at all but the highest elevations.

In sports news, the girls soccer team blanked Bigfork 4-0 to win its first state A soccer championship in 21 years.