Polson residents urged to control noxious knotweed
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POLSON — During the July 21 meeting of the Polson City Commission, John Hart, a member of the City of Polson Streets Department crew, gave a report on Japanese Knotweed, a noxious weed flourishing in Polson. Hart brought a slideshow and information for interested folks.
“It’s not your mother’s or grandmother’s knapweed or dandelions in the back yard,” Hart said of knotweed.
The weed is showing up all over Polson, according to Hart. It can grow to 19 feet and looks like bamboo on the stalk.
“It takes over trees, lawn, shrubbery … the roots can go 50 or 60 feet out,” he said.
At the Carol Sherick Trail and Seventh Avenue W., Hart has been working on a patch of the weed for two years and has it about under control, but that’s after twice weekly spraying.
Concerned over the noxious weed covering hillsides and working its way down to the river, Hart said its seed can be carried by water and vegetate the banks so thoroughly people can’t fish or use the area.
He advised homeowners to look for the weed, which particularly likes piles of old wood, and start spraying to get it under control. Lake County is also entering the fight against the knotweed.
Dennis DeVries, a Lake County Conservation District Commissioner, said part of the organization’s goal for the year was to assist the City of Polson with some of the weed problems. Conservation commissioners, the weed district and City of Polson staff plan to meet next week and form a partnership to attack the nuisance weed.
In other business commissioners approved use of Riverside Park and Main Street for the 14th annual car show and concert on Aug. 8-10. Anderson Broadcasting will be in charge of Summerfest, as the car show will be called, and would like to hold a Bop-a-Dips concert at Riverside Park on Aug. 9. They requested an extension of Riverside Park’s hours, a waiver of open container ordinance for the concert from 6:30 p.m. to 11 p.m., and a waiver of the Polson Development Code noise level ordinance. They also requested road closures for Main Street south of Highway 93 and Third and Fourth Avenues to First Streets West and East during daytime hours for the car show and at Salish Point Park for pre-registration.
Mayor Heather Knudson called upon Polson Chief of Police Wade Nash for his input. Nash, who had already held a meeting with the Anderson staff, said his issue was manpower. He’s short two officers, one in training and another in the interview process.
Also he had concerns about open containers at Riverside Park.
Anderson Broadcasting said plans are for a beer garden with a fenced-off enclosure and agreed to pay for additional officers from Lake County.
In the nuts and bolts of local government, Jennifer Cote, Cote and Associates, presented the final audit report for fiscal year 2012-13. The audit report will be available on the city’s website at www.cityofpolson.com.
The Commissioners also held a special meeting on July 28 at 6 p.m. to discuss the water and sewer rates discussed at their July 21 city commission meeting. The meeting was scheduled earlier than normal in anticipation of a large crowd.
