Hometown Helena Thursday, April 11th: NorthWestern Energy

 Click here to watch this week's meeting

Hometown Helena this Thursday, April 11th: NorthWestern Energy

April 11, 2024


Greetings Everyone,


We’re going to visit with Mr. Brian Bird, CEO of NorthWestern Energy, Inc. this week. Mr. Bird has been CEO of the company since early 2023. There’s a lot of information readily available about Mr. Bird and Northwestern Energy. I thought this article, in a South Dakota publication from March 2023 was especially thorough. Please take a look if you have time this week. It will great to meet Mr. Bird and hear from him at Hometown Helena this Thursday. 


We determined some time ago to keep Hometown ‘Helena-centric.’ I’ve said a few times that we keep our eye on the Little Picture. As Dorothy said: "There’s no place like home.” And there is nothing more important than what is going on in our own backyard. With that in mind, we have some very interesting guests and presentations scheduled for the next few weeks (see below). 


This spring the people of Helena are being asked to renew their commitment to public schools and to public safety. The school levies will be on the ballot in May, while the public safety mill levies will be on the Ballot in June. You’ll see that we have good discussions on each subject coming up in the weeks ahead. My understanding is that there will be additional informational get-togethers in the weeks ahead. Please plan to attend one or more of these meetings so that you can cast informed votes in May and June.


Also on the ballot in June will be the decennial vote on whether or not to establish a Local Government Study Commission to evaluate Helena’s city government structure, and Lewis and Clark county’s government structure. They League of Women Voters (Helena chapter) has held a series of meetings on this upcoming ballot question; and other educational presentations will be held before the vote in June. Ladies from the League will let us know when and where the forums are scheduled to be held.   


People decided ten years ago to stick with the current structure(s) at both the city and the county. There have been many changes in the local government world in the last ten years. This is an opportunity to determine, in an organized fashion through your vote at the ballot box, whether or not these structures are still adequate for, and serving the citizens of, Helena and Lewis and Clark county to the maximum possible degree. 


We’re looking forward to seeing you either in person Thursday morning at Helena College, or to seeing you on the Zoom, courtesy of Aja Rail and the good people at Pinion Global, Inc.


Jim Smith

406-949-1002

April 18

  • Raven’s Feather Productions - What Happened While Hero Was Dead

  • 406 Recycling, Earth Day


April 25

  • Mann Gulch 75th Memorial - Forest Service

  • Helena Schools - Levies on ballot


May 2

  • HFD Chief Jon Campbell & HPD Chief Brett Petty - public safety mill levy

  • Helena Area Community Foundation: Greater Helena Gives


May 9

  • Sandy Bauman and team, Helena College Tour


May 16

  • Helena Symphony

  • Helena BID


May 23

  • Airport Update - Jeff Wadekamper

  • Helena/Capital HS Orchestra


May 30

  • PAL Graduates & Matthew Carey, principal

  • Montana Youth Challenge


June 6

  • Angel Fund - Janet Riis

  • Communities that Care - Sarah Graham


June 13

  • St Peter’s - Wade Johnson


June 20

  • Amy Watson, State Economist

Please limit announcements and comments to 2 minutes.

Hometown Helena - Thursday, April 11th, 7 a.m. @ Helena College & Live via ZOOM hosted by Pinion:

  • Brian Bird, NorthWestern Energy

  • Online Meeting Instructions: Please keep your phone or microphone muted during the meeting and note that your camera may be on depending on your ZOOM settings. Please "raise your hand" at the start of the meeting if you will have an opening update or introduction.


  • In-Person Announcements: Please plan on approaching the front of the room to make announcements directly to our host so online attendees can hear. There is time at the beginning of the meeting for announcements. Please limit announcements and comments to 2 minutes.


  • View Program Recording: Hometown Helena is recorded and posted at HometownHelena.news, typically within a day.


  • Hometown Email List: This private email list is not shared. You can join or update your email information at HometownHelena.news or by clicking the button below.

Join or Update your Email

The Hometown Helena Team is Jim Smith, Rick Hays, Kelly Cresswell, Emily McVey, Tom McGree, Peter Strauss, Ann Waickman, Haley McKnight and Matt Elsaesser

Comments

Post a Comment