Council Meetings Restart after Summer Hiatus

SEELEY LAKE - The Seeley Lake Community Council got back on schedule with their meeting Oct. 9. It was the first meeting since the spring after all of the summer meetings were canceled due to lack of quorum or the Rice Ridge Fire.

The council was given an update on county activities from Missoula County Commissioner Jean Curtiss. Sheriff T.J. McDermott discussed the departure of Deputy Mike Sunderland from Seeley Lake and the search for his replacement. Two new members were sworn onto the council and the council reorganized its leadership. There is also a vacancy on the council.

Commissioner Curtiss said a new report on the state of the workforce is due out later this month. She shared some highlights from the draft of the report.

Employers are having a hard time finding workers with the right skills but there are more training opportunities currently going on than previously realized. Worker shortages are most seen in health care and the trades like plumbers and electricians.

The commissioners have been reviewing the elections administrator position to see if it’s working to have an appointed person or go back to attaching the job to an elected official, the county Clerk and Recorder. The county will take public comment on the issue until Oct. 20 and will make the decision Oct. 26.

The county has not worked out anything with the state to resolve the easement issue that keeps the county from plowing snow on Grizzly Drive or Cub Lane in Dogtown.

The commissioners have also decided not to give the council its $1,000 annual budget. Most of the county’s community councils, including Seeley’s, haven’t been spending a full $1,000 each year. The money is still budgeted so if the council needs the funding they will have to apply for it.

Sheriff McDermott thanked Deputy Sunderland for his service in Seeley Lake and welcomed him to his new position as a detective in Missoula. Currently a deputy from Missoula has been sent to work each shift in Seeley Lake.

McDermott said he is accepting public comment on things people liked about having a third deputy in the area and qualities he should look for in a replacement. He was impressed with Sunderland’s integration into the community and especially the schools.

In other business, Sally Johnson and Kris Martin were sworn in as the newest council members.

There is an opening on the council due to Klaus von Stutterheim’s resignation. The position will be filled by appointment. If interested in the position, people should contact the county commissioners.

Stutterheim has volunteered to continue to assist the council with press releases, agendas and other duties.

The council reorganized with Chris Stout as Chair, Jack Greenwood as Vice Chair, Jan Guelff as Treasurer and Duane Schlabach as Secretary.

The next SLCC meeting is scheduled for Nov. 13, 6 p.m. at the Seeley Lake Historical Museum & Visitors Center. Pizza and beverages will be provided starting at 5:30 p.m.