Giving the Lincoln Area a Voice

The Upper Blackfoot Valley Community Council has been meeting in Lincoln for well over a decade.

Composed of seven elected members, the Council serves in an advisory capacity to the County Commissioners, giving Lincoln residents an opportunity to bring their concerns and opinions to the county.

Lincoln has had a community council since the early 1990s. The current council replaced the original Lincoln Community Council in 2007, which was suspended in 2006 following the resignation of most the board. It was reborn as the Upper Blackfoot Valley Community Council to reflect the fact it represents the entire Lincoln Valley.

“The Community Council gives us direct input into what goes on around here and gives us a voice. The County Commissioners have been really receptive to our voice,” Council Chairman Zach Muse said.

Muse noted that the Commissioners try to have any business related to Lincoln and the Upper Blackfoot Valley held in Lincoln, such as holding votes here and providing open forum space for discussion.

The Council meets on the third Tuesday of every month at 6:30 p.m. and is joined each month by a County Commissioner. Commissioner Susan Good-Geise, who had been the Commission representative, attended her last meeting on Dec. 17. Beginning in January, Commissioner Jim McCormick will attend future Council meetings.

Muse said the time between UBVCC meetings and Government Day, which meets the first Friday of each month at 10:30 a.m., allows the Commissioners time to discuss and find potential solutions to the issues brought up at Council meetings.

While Montana State Code allows for the creation of a community council, the Upper Blackfoot Valley Community Council is the only one in Lewis & Clark County, and one of only a handful in Montana as a whole. There are seven in Missoula County, including one in Seeley Lake, as well as the Fergus County Community Council and the Greater Gardiner Community Council.

Past issues presented at UBVCC meetings include having the speed limit signs moved farther out towards the edges of town, fixing bad spots in roads, and moving the cemetery under local control. The meetings also give commissioners more insight into local projects like the Lincoln Community River Park and the planned skate park.

“The County has more pull and more support. They know who to talk to for grant-writing and networking. For the River Park, they helped put money behind it,” Muse said.

This year, the UBVCC is looking to fill three positions. Two seats are currently open and another seat is up for election. Those interested in running must be registered voters, live in the Upper Blackfoot Valley area, and submit the Special Purpose District candidate filing form by Feb. 10. If more than three candidates file, an election will be held locally on May 5.

“Folks need to come to these meetings and be heard. The County representatives will talk to us about it, even if they can’t do what we want. It allows the community to speak for the community, not the Council to speak for the community. We need people to come down and be heard, to get their side in so the Commission can hear them,” Muse said. He said that it’s an open forum space and that there is time at each meeting for attendees to bring up issues. “If they want someone with knowledge in a specialized area, like health or law enforcement, they can let me know ahead of time so I can try to arrange to get folks to show up.”

The next Council meeting will be Jan. 21 at 6:30 p.m. in the Lincoln Library Community Room.