Attorney courted
Attorney courted
By STU MERRY
The City of Garrison offers a wide variety of services, but in recent years, there’s one service that has been about as illusive as that record walleye in Lake Sakakawea – the services of an attorney on a regular basis. That could change in the near future.
At their meeting Monday night, Garrison City Council members heard from GAIA officials Mike Gackle and Mike Matteson that an attorney is willing to locate in Garrison. The move to the community for a lawyer hinged in part on becoming the city’s attorney.
“To make it feasible, the individual would like to become the city attorney,” explained Gackle.
Hearing what was proposed, city officials said they are willing to give a new city attorney a shot.
Alderman Chad Betz, who served as acting mayor in the absence of Mayor Shannon Jeffers, said: “He could come on board … go through ordinances and be that go-to guy …. If we had an attorney, we’d probably have meetings move a lot faster. We need something … nobody is beating down our door to become our city attorney,” he added.
Aldermen Steve Hasenwinkel and Gene Hummel agreed an attorney would be desirable.
“As the residents and city as a whole, we need a lawyer … I am definitely for it,” Hasenwinkel said.
“For the benefit of the council and the city … I think we should bring him in,” Hummel added.
The cost to the city would be $2,000 per month for the 12 months of the contract. Additional costs would apply for preparing legal documents as directed by the city.
