Missoula's Neighborhoods - Changes seen by a 15 Year Missoulian Paper Carrier

If one had gone to some of Missoula County Public Schools Board or Committee meetings in the past decade you would have heard quite often the notion that our "neighborhoods are hollowing out". This was a favorite saying especially by the MCPS high school Trustee Jim Sadler. (Missoulians can be grateful that Sadler was defeated in the latest school board election after serving 20 years on the school Board.)

The notion that our neighborhoods were hollowing out never had merit. Why do I say that with such confidence? 

In 2004, I attended a High School Futures Meeting. This forum was hosted by MCPS administrator Cheryl Wilson (a most unpleasant woman!). Wilson invited Dr. Larry Swanson to speak on Missoula demographics in order to give the people on her appointed group an update on what was going on in Missoula's neighborhoods.

Surprise, surprise. What Wilson and other administrators that aligned with the notion that our neighborhoods were "hollowing out" found out from Swanson's presentation is that our neighborhoods were "transitioning from a retiree generation to what Swanson named the "echo echo" generation, that of the baby boomers grandchildren who were in the process of marrying and starting a family.

As a family that has been tossing the papers in the Rattlesnake area, in the lower Rattlesnake and in Lincolnwood for the past 15 years we have had a unique close up look at the transitioning of this neighborhood which Swanson states is taking place throughout Missoula.

This is what we have observed. We got to know who lived in the homes on our paper route due to correspondence by the Missoulian or the customers themselves. Therefore, we noticed when one of our older customers died or moved to a retirement setting. And in more cases than not, a young family would move in. 

We began to notice that when an older resident left his/her home that swing sets would now appear. That little bicycles would be int he yard along with the children's balls and other toys. This a testament to Swanson's predictions. As Swanson said - he did not have an agenda, he had the statistics and then simply presented the information, at first for free, and later in a report commissioned by the school district costing about $1,000 (not sure on this amount).

Take it from a 15 year Missoulian paper carrier who has seen up close and personal the changes in a couple of our neighborhoods - our neighborhoods are transitioning from a retirees to young families with children, bikes, swing sets, balls and all. 

FYI - To support the idea that some unpopular Trustees and administrators did not like the ideas brought forth by Dr. Swanson, read the following - 

In one of the later High School Future Meetings a citizen requested that Dr. Swanson be asked to return for another presentation or an update on the information given in his earlier talk.

MCPS administrator Cheryl Wilson stated, "NO, WE DIDN'T GET WHAT WE WANTED OUT OF THAT ANYWAY."

Shockingly, Wilson was willing to ignore the valid statistics from Dr. Swanson. With this unbelievable statement and the dismissing of such important information to our city Wilson displayed another breach of trust in our school district. Wilson, former Superintendent Clark, and Trustees such as Sadler, Rosemary Harrison, Jenda Hemphill, Joe Toth, Scott Bixler, Toni Rehbein have swindled Misoulians in this abrocation of duties of heeding a professional demographer.