09/30/2024“Helena This Week” is reported and written By JoVonne Wagner. Send your Helena news and tips to [email protected] closes meeting, settlement in the worksLast week the Helena City Commission held a closed meeting to discuss strategy regarding a pending lawsuit against the city over levied assessments from 2011 to 2021.The mayor’s office later told Montana Free Press that it would not reveal specifics about the closed meeting, although, according to court records, a settlement is apparently in the works.Initially filed in 2022 in the Lewis and Clark District Court, the lawsuit alleged that the city of Helena’s street maintenance district, which was created to fund the upkeep of city streets, violated city and state codes. The lawsuit was filed by RGB Investments, 80 Proof LLC, CAS Holdings and the Blatter Family Trust.The plaintiffs have demanded that the city refund what they paid for the assessments, declare that the street maintenance assessments were invalid and pay for their legal fees. On Sept. 11 of this year, the city filed a motion with the consent of the plaintiffs to halt the lawsuit while they negotiated a settlement. If the parties can’t reach a settlement, they must submit a status report to the court within 60 days.  Public NoticeBallot info session: The League of Women Voters of the Helena Area and the Lewis and Clark Library will co-sponsor an informational session on the upcoming ballot initiatives on Monday, Oct. 7. The session, “Do You Know What You’re Voting For?” aims to educate voters on implications of the three constitutional initiatives, CI-126, CI-127 and CI-128. The event will include former state representatives Frank Garner and Matthew Monforton as guest speakers, as well as Betsy Brandborg, the retired general counsel of the Montana State Bar. The session will be available in person at the Lewis and Clark Library, 120 S. Last Chance Gulch, as well as on Zoom, and begins at 5:30 p.m.   City board vacancies: Helena is seeking applications to fill several city board openings. The positions are: Two residents to serve on the ADA Compliance Committee Two residents to serve on the Affordable Housing Trust Fund Advisory Board One resident to serve on the Board of Adjustment   Two residents to serve on the Business Improvement District  One resident to serve on the Citizens Conservation Board Two residents to serve on the Golf Advisory Board Two residents to serve on the Helena Public Art Committee One resident to serve on the City-County Consolidated Parks Board One resident to serve on the City-County Consolidated Planning Board Four residents to serve on the Tourism Business Improvement District Board of Trustees One resident to serve on the Zoning CommissionThe volunteer positions have varying term lengths and requirements. The deadline to submit applications is Monday, Oct. 7, at 4 p.m. For more information about each position, contact city commission deputy clerk Alyx Montiel at [email protected]. 5 Things to Know in Helena Fire mitigation money for Mount Helena park: The city commission during a city meeting last week accepted two separate grants that will fund fire reduction efforts at Mount Helena City Park. The first grant, which came from Lewis and Clark County, awarded $22,475 with the city providing $7,475 in matching funds. The state’s Department of Natural Resources and Conservation awarded the city a second grant of $100,000 with the city putting up $25,000.Fire tower bid secured, funding is next: The city officially approved the $385,803 bid for the fire tower restoration project from Dick Anderson Construction. However, the bid came in above the $271,486 the city had initially budgeted. City finance director Sheila Danielson told the commission that, with 10% added to the bid to cover contingencies, the amount needed to fund the restoration is $424,383. The city will now need to determine how to pay the difference of $152,897. Alternative funding sources for the fire tower project will be discussed at the next regular meeting on Monday, Oct. 7. Golf course bid for solar: The city commission last week approved Onsite Energy Inc.’s bid of $181,573 to install solar panels at the Bill Rogers Golf Course. The city will now seek a bid for underground electrical installation for the project. School’s admin staff gets a raise: During a school board of trustees work session last week, officials approved a 1.5% wage increase for administrative staff. The increase, the first in the past four years, is meant to meet current market conditions. According to Superintendent Rex Weltz, the raise will cost the district’s general fund about $44,000. New BID director: The city’s Business Improvement District hired Alycia Ryan last month as its new director after John Dendy left the position earlier this year. Ryan, who has been a frequent visitor of Helena, moved permanently from Illinois with her husband in May. She formerly worked as the director of government affairs for the American Rental Association. Ryan told MTFP the district is currently working on plans for the walking mall’s holiday decorations and the Festival of Lights.  3 Questions For Helena Food Share last week named its replacement for executive director Bruce Day, who announced his plan to retire earlier this year. Jordan Evertz, who has lived in Helena for the past nine years, will fill the nonprofit’s leadership role starting Nov. 1. Evertz spoke with MTFP about the new chapter for the food share, the opening of the new resource center and how she will use her past work experience in her new job. Her comments have been edited for length and clarity.MTFP:  What’s your professional background and why did you want to work with Helena Food Share?Evertz:  I currently work at Youth Dynamics as the clinical director for residential services. In my current role, I’m part of our executive leadership team, so I’m bringing to Helena Food Share a background in strategic planning and leadership in the nonprofit field, working to serve Montana communities. I have volunteered with Helena Food Share in various ways over the last couple of years, and, through my interactions and experience with the organization, I have gained a lot of respect. You can tell everybody who’s associated with Helena Food Share is just passionate about really contributing to our community and meeting the needs of the community. Through those experiences, when I saw this position open, it really seemed like a great fit for not only my personal values but also my passion for wanting to be part of an organization that really contributes to meeting the needs of my community. MTFP: The nonprofit is set to open the new resource center in October. What can the public expect from you as the facility opens? Evertz:  I believe that operations will begin in the new building on Oct. 7. Bruce and I will have a really nice transition. [We] will work closely together to make that transition as smooth as possible. Not only for the Helena Food Share team, but also to ensure that that transition doesn’t disrupt any services or programs.I’m really excited about the new Community Food Resource Center because it gives the ability and the opportunity to expand services and also package and care for food more efficiently and effectively. I think even just having the ability to know that there’s room for us to expand in those ways is really great.MTFP: How will you contribute to the nonprofit as the next executive director? Evertz: In my current role I help with strategic planning and then implementation of strategic goals and providing oversight. I will carry a lot of those same skills to my new role with Helena FoodShare. In addition to that, being able to help, I’ve been part of developing programs and then also ensuring the sustainability of programs, and so, bringing my experiences and my skills from having those opportunities in my current role to the variety of programs that Helena Food Share offers, I think will be a really great compliment.Comings and Goings Ground was formally broken Sept. 23 on a 72-unit apartment building that, when complete, should expand the limited number of below-market-rent apartments available to Helena households that can’t comfortably afford market-rate housing.Developer Seth O’Connell of Missoula-based United Housing Partners said at the groundbreaking ceremony that the project is the first to move ahead with support from the city of Helena’s Affordable Housing Trust fund, which provided a $1 million loan, according to a handout provided to attendees. Other public support for the project includes federal low-income housing tax credits and the state’s Coal Trust Multifamily Home loan program, the latter of which was expanded by the state Legislature last year.Speakers at the groundbreaking ceremony included Helena Mayor Wilmot Collins and Gov. Greg Gianforte.“This is exactly why we created the affordable housing trust fund,” Collins said. The three-story building will include one, two and three-bedroom apartments, including 12 set aside for extremely low-income residents earning no more than 30% of the area median income, or $23,750 for a two-person household. Twenty-five of the remaining units will be priced at levels affordable to residents earning up to 60% of median income and the remaining 35 for residents earning up to 70%. The project is located off Dorothy Street, behind the Ford and Honda of Helena auto dealerships.—Eric DietrichMight Be Fun Tickets went on sale last week for country music artist and Grammy-winner Clint Black, who will perform in Helena next year. Scheduled for Wednesday, Feb.12, at the Helena Civic Center, the concert will mark 35 years since the release of Black’s debut album, “Killin’ Time.” Ticket prices start at $50 and can be purchased on the civic center’s website. The post City in settlement talks over street maintenance lawsuit appeared first on Montana Free Press.