Six applicants present for Kalispell Ward 3 seat; council to appoint at Jan. 20 meeting

Six applicants for the vacant Ward 3 city council seat gave brief presentations at the Jan. 12 Kalispell work session, and the council set a public appointment decision for its Jan. 20 meeting.

City Manager Sid Nygren told the council that state law requires the council, by majority vote, to appoint a Ward 3 replacement within 30 days of the vacancy. Nygren said the city received six applicants and solicited brief presentations to inform council direction ahead of next week's decision.

The applicants, in alphabetical order as they appeared, were: - Madison Evans — said she has long lived in Ward 3, cited personal experience with city programs (library, pool) and said she wants to "leave the place better than you found it." - Arthur Frehine — described his teaching and community experience and offered to serve if selected. - James Herring — a software engineer who emphasized communication and careful, informed decision-making. - Carlene Core — cited past service on the planning board and tax-increment committee and argued downtown Main Street interests deserve representation. - Cassidy Kipp — outlined land-use and affordable-housing work and emphasized managing growth and infrastructure. - Dustin Leftridge — a managing partner at a local law firm who cited local volunteer work and fiscal stewardship as strengths.

Candidates described a mix of priorities including parks, infrastructure, downtown vitality and fiscal responsibility. Councilors thanked the applicants and discussed meeting logistics for deliberation; the city attorney and manager reminded the council that private executive sessions to rank applicants are not appropriate in this open-appointment process.

Next step: The council said it will continue its public deliberation and make an appointment at the Jan. 20 council meeting, per the timeline Nygren described.