Roundup Record Tribune & Winnett Times -

Roundup Montana is a fascinating town. Located in central Montana, we see and share its rich history of coal mining and agriculture. Our fair town had its major growth between 1880's and 1920's. Roundup once peaked at 3,500 in population! We even had a taxicab service in early 1900's. I have lived in Roundup since 1996 and bought an old coal miners house in 1999 in our historic Camp three area just outside of city limits. I fell in love with Camp three and its historic patina. Many property owners in Roundup have remodeled old homes increasing the beauty of our town and some have bought old, abandoned churches making lovely family dwellings out of these. North end sees many beautiful new houses and some just being built. We are prospering as a small town. And we show a great pride in our lifestyle and property. But we also have some problems. Residents like myself see decay and hoarding all over and I may add, in my neighborhood of Camp three it is very pronounced. When I bought my small miners house in 1999, Camp three was a quiet, clean quaint cluster of old houses. The little "old" ladies as they were known, Elsie, Annie, Mary, Isabelle, were born into mining families. They married raised their own family here and kept up their houses with love and respect. I will use my own neighborhood as an example of hoarding, and decay. Today, Camp three has become an illegal and unauthorized dump site. One family hoards. They dump everywhere, leave garbage to rot and when asked to clean it up, laugh and continue their attempt to disgust neighbors. and show a disregard for others. Hoarding is not laziness. It is a mental disorder that is curable by professionals using cognitive behavior therapy. Over the years I have lived in Roundup, many attempts have been made to clean it up. But we never had backup from commissioners and County Attorney. Until now. Our current commissioners are working with County Attorney Ken Petersen and also, Sheriff Shawn Lesnick on ways to change ordinance and clean up Roundup decay. I support our commissioners on this important issue. Just because someone has a mental disorder doesn't mean that we must put up with their filthy, clutter that attracts, wild animals, feral cats and insects, plus creating a dreadful stench. We as proud residents of Roundup deserve better.

Nancy Kemler

Roundup