Scott looks back at time as commissioner

As he packed up his office on Dec. 31, outgoing Flathead County commissioner Cal Scott, R-Columbia Falls, looked back at his time in office.

“I’m not going very far,” he said. “I’ve left the building but not the community.”

Scott, 71, was appointed commissioner following the death of commissioner Jim Dupont in March 2012. He was elected later that year to fill out the remainder of Dupont’s term and then lost to Phil Mitchell, R-Whitefish, in the June 2014 primary election.

Scott, the District 1 North Valley commissioner, said his Dec. 31 vote in favor of a construction contract for the county’s South Campus Building in Kalispell was among the most important decisions he made during his time as a commissioner.

“Facilitating for the future without a current or future burden to taxpayers was the most beneficial impact I’ve had,” he said.

The job of county commissioner was easier than he expected, Scott said, largely because of the “depth of expertise and commitment” from Flathead County department heads.

“The county manager and department heads take good care of our people in the Flathead,” he said.

Scott said he worked diligently over the past couple of years to chart a course for relocating the Agency on Aging from a leased building on Kelly Road to a better, more spacious facility. He said he will continue to be involved at some level with the Agency on Aging.

Scott also cited his effort to organize a work group to preserve Demersville Cemetery. He said he intends to stay involved with that effort to maintain graves and records for the historic county cemetery. He said he’s been involved with a similar preservation effort at Woodlawn Cemetery in Columbia Falls.

Scott also said he will continue his board involvement with the Child Development Center, Western Montana Mental Health and Flathead Valley Chemical Dependency Clinic.

As for his spare time, Scott plans to take up beekeeping. He said commissioner Gary Krueger offered to help him set up a hive.

Scott and his wife recently sold their home and property on Montana 40 and moved to Kalispell, putting him in a new commission district, but he was uncertain about whether he would run for commissioner again.