City panel seeks input on contentious issues

The chair of the Havre City Council Ordinance Committee has scheduled a meeting for Tuesday with hopes of covering a multitude of issues, including several high-profile items.

"We may not get to them all, but we should at least schedule how we would get at them in the next few months," Chair Andrew Brekke said when he scheduled the committee meeting during City Council's last meeting.

Two of the items he mentioned have raised debate in the community over the last several months. One of those is proposing a city business license.

The idea of creating a business license requirement in Havre, debated for decades in the community, was shelved late last year after about 15 business owners spoke in opposition during a committee meeting.

Another is the issue of downtown parking. Mayor Tim Solomon said in an interview this week he has spoken to downtown business owners, and he and they have come up with some proposed changes to the city ordinances for the committee to look at.

Brekke said another issue at Tuesday's meeting will be looking at a social host ordinance, where property owners knowingly providing a place for underage drinking could be held liable.

Members of the Hill County Coalition on Rethinking Drinking have a sample ordinance to show the committee and will answer questions about the idea, he said.

Some other topics that he said he wants to at least schedule for a discussion include the sale of fireworks inside city limits and some changes to the animal ordinance, recently updated by the council, requested by the city animal control officers; and regulating use of cellular telephones by drivers in the city.