St. Ignatius city council discusses water, medical marijuana
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ST. IGNATIUS — After a boil water order for St. Ignatius was downgraded to a health advisory, a few residents voiced concerns at the Aug. 3 city council meeting that they weren’t notified soon enough of the E. coli contamination in town water.
Hope Ranel, a caregiver at Mill Pond Home assisted living facility, asked the council to give residents more warning if a similar health risk comes up again.
“We would like to be notified even if there’s a suspicion,” Ranel said. “We did have several residents that ended up sick. We have elderly people with compromised immune systems.”
Mayor Charley Gariepy explained that although the first E. coli-positive water samples were taken July 19, the town didn’t get test results until the evening of July 21. Water users were officially notified of the problem the next morning, and chlorinators installed on the wells in question.
“A lot of people in town knew before the town even knew (about the contamination),” Gariepy said.
Gariepy said the Lake County Health Department is planning to meet with the towns of Polson, Ronan and St. Ignatius to address the notification processes that the towns use to alert residents of possible health threats. Gariepy said when he finds out more information about the meeting, he’ll let residents know if it’s open to the public.
After passing a temporary moratorium on medical marijuana businesses within city limits at the July meeting, the city council voted to use Ronan’s medical marijuana ordinances as models for new laws in St. Ignatius. Emergency ordinances restricting use of medical marijuana in public and zoning of medical marijuana businesses will be put to a vote at the Sept. 9 council meeting.
The council also ratified Gariepy’s appointment of Jonathan Gilliland as a reserve officer with the St. Ignatius Police Department, and approved a $1,500 charge for having radios and other equipment installed in one of the town’s three police cars.
Council member Marine Johnson pointed out that ordinances regarding parking on city streets, “junk cars” and people living in camp trailers within city limits need to be enforced. Residential streets are often congested from too many people parking on both sides of the street, she said.
“We just need to get cleaned up,” Johnson said. “We’re starting to look like a hovel.”
Police Chief Shay Clairmont explained although the town has ordinances to deal with issues of junk vehicles and trailers, the town’s laws aren’t enforceable against tribal members.
“If it’s a violation of any kind of ordinance, we can’t cite (tribal members). The tribe doesn’t recognize any (town) ordinances,” Clairmont said. “That is all stuff Tribal Council will have to look at in their own way and decide if they want to make any ordinances governing that kind of thing.
“If (the junk vehicles are) on the roadway creating a problem, then we can deal with them.”
Clairmont said police officers will start leaving notices on windshields of cars parked in the town’s right-of-way, and if the vehicles aren’t moved, they’ll be towed.
Clairmont also said he plans to leave the St. Ignatius Police Department.
“I will be resigning. I will do up a letter and let you guys know when it’s gonna be,” he told the council.
The council also adopted a preliminary 2010-2011 budget and will hold another hearing to finalize the budget at the regular city council meeting at 7 p.m. Sept. 9 at City Hall.
