MISSOULA — As the Missoula City Council kicks off a new year and welcomes new members, it will first turn its focus on electing committee chairs and new council leaders.
Over the past few years, council member Bryan von Lossburg has served as City Council president. Under city rules, the council president would fill in as mayor in the event the elected mayor becomes ill or unavailable.
The council this Monday night will elect von Lossberg’s replacement. Ward 3 representative Gwen Jones has served as vice president for the past few years. She remains on council and is a likely candidate for the leadership position.
On Wednesday, the City Council’s Committee of the Whole will also elect the chairs of the city’s various committees. The Land Use and Planning Committee will also consider Mayor John Engen’s appointment of Dori Gilels to the Consolidated Planning Board.
Gilels, a former business owner, ran to represent Ward 3 on the Missoula City Council but was narrowly defeated by Daniel Carlino, who ran as a Democratic Socialist and tweeted as recently as this week about winning his election.
In its first order of business, members of the administration and finance committee will also pick up where last year’s City Council left off by considering new council rules.
From decorum to parliamentary authority, the rules haven’t been amended in nearly a decade, and with a new version of the Mason’s Manual of Legislative Procedure out, the city believes it’s time to bring yesterday’s rules into the modern age.
The City Council’s agenda can be viewed by following this link.
