Havre mayor, judge, council members sworn in

City finance clerk Doug Kaercher was sworn in to a new office Monday at Havre City Council's meeting, taking his new position as the mayor of Havre.

Kaercher then swore in the newly elected members of the city council and the city judge.

Among those sworn in were City Judge Janie M. Hedstrom, Ward 1 Councilperson Kimberly Bolta, Ward 2 Councilperson Heather Parker, Ward 3 Councilperson Lindsey Ratliff, Ward 3 Councilperson Andrew Brekke and Ward 4 Councilperson Sarah McKinney.

Ratliff and McKinney were re-elected to their seats and Brekke - who served several terms on the council previously - was voted to retain the seat to which he was appointed in May 2020.

Bolta, who couldn't attend due to illness, is replacing former Councilperson Terry Lilletvedt and Parker is replacing former Councilperson Karen Swenson, neither of whom ran for reelection. All four ran unopposed and were elected by acclamation.

Kaercher thanked Lilletvedt and Swenson for their time on the council and their service to the community.

"It's not always an easy job to be a councilperson," he said. "Some of the phone calls you get late at night, some undesirable decisions you have to make ... it's not easy."

He also thanked his predecessor, Tim Solomon, for his time as mayor.

"He's served our community for 12 years, he's done it admirably, and I really appreciate the time that was spent with the city," Kaercher said.

Solomon said he'll miss the people he's worked with and the challenge, but he's looking forward to retirement.

"It will be nice to relax now that both me and my wife are retired," he said.

Kaercher said he's excited to get started as Havre's mayor, a position he views as the apex of a long career in local government.

"It's an exciting time for the city of Havre," he said, "We've got some fairly big issues coming down the pipeline, and to be part of that process, to make a difference, its always pretty exhilarating to me. I've spent a lot of my career in local government, and this is the pinnacle of that."

The council then voted unanimously to appoint Brekke as council president.

During the meeting, Kaercher announced that the council would begin holding town hall meetings on the third Monday of every month.

He said the city council has a lot of big issues to deal with in the next year or two and he wants to see more public engagement with the council.

He said these town halls would be an opportunity for the council to address the public's concerns and questions and provide information and education on what and how the city is doing things in a more informal setting than an official meeting.

Kaercher said a lot of information about the council's activities gets out into the public, and not all of it is accurate and reliable, and this is a way that the council members can directly engage with the public.

He said as long as the town halls get participation from the public he hopes they will become a fixture.

The council also briefly discussed infrastructure priorities in the area.

Kaercher said Havre Public Works is looking at street improvements, and they are looking for the most efficient way to make use of American Rescue Plan Act funds to make some of these projects happen.

Havre Public Works Director Dave Peterson said an engineering firm is preparing a preliminary engineering report on the city's sewer and water systems, and the big project they have in mind is the replacement of city lead water lines, which needs to be done by 2026.

During the public comments section of the meeting, Connie LaSalle objected to a piece of property she's been leasing from the city for years being put up for bid. LaSalle said her family had had the property for a century.

Kaercher said this morning that, a couple years ago, then-Mayor Tim Solomon decided to re-examine all of the city's leases and decided to put them up for bid to make sure the city is getting its fair share from these properties.

He said the matter is still being looked over by the city attorney, but if the properties go up for bid, LaSalle will have the opportunity to bid on that land like everyone else.