Montana

Helena names three finalists for city manager post

Published

3 months ago

December 1, 2025

Helena names three finalists for city manager post

The Helena City Commission announced Monday the three finalists to fill its city manager position.

After nearly two months of a turbulent recruitment process that included an ongoing lawsuit, the commission selected Janet Hawkinson, the town manager from Palisade, Colorado; Douglas Schulze, most recently the city manager of Banning, California; and Helena’s Alana Lake, the current executive director of the Montana Public Service Commission.

The Helena City Commission will begin public interviews of the candidates on Monday, Dec. 8, at the City-County Building, 316 N. Park Ave. Schulze will be the first interview from 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m., followed by Hawkinson’s interview from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Later that day, the public will have the opportunity to ask questions of the two out-of-town finalists during town hall meetings on the second floor of the Montana Club, 24 W. Sixth Ave. Schulze’s town hall will be from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m., followed by Hawkinson from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m.

On Tuesday, Dec. 9, the commission will hold its public interview of Lake from 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. Her town hall will be in the City-County Building’s commission chambers from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m.

The city has provided online meeting links for each interview and town hall meeting, which can be accessed on the city commission’s Zoom hub.

The commission will hold its final deliberation on Wednesday, Dec. 10, at the commission chambers from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Hawkinson has been the town manager of Palisade, a town with a population of 2,600 as of 2024, since 2018. According to the city press release, she previously served as the director of community development for Minturn, Colorado. She holds a master’s degree in landscape architecture and urban planning from the University of Colorado, Denver, and a bachelor’s degree in political science from Fort Lewis College.

Schulze has more than 36 years of experience in municipal leadership, according to the city release, and has led city governments in Sandstone, Minnesota, and the communities of Medina, Normandy Park and Bainbridge Island, all in Washington state. Most recently, he served as city manager of Banning, California, a city of approximately 32,000 people, although he was placed on indefinite paid leave from that position last February, according to the Riverside Record. It’s unclear if that paid leave is ongoing. The mayor of Banning told the local newspaper that Schulze was not under an investigation but that it was ” … a matter of looking at some concerns.”

Schulze holds a master’s degree in urban studies and a bachelor’s degree in public administration, although the city release doesn’t specify where he earned those degrees.

Lake joined the Montana Public Service Commission, the state board that regulates shareholder-owned utilities, as its executive director this past March. According to the city release, she has more than 10 years of experience in military and federal law enforcement, including work with the U.S. Air Force Office of Special Investigations. She has led teams across the globe that involved criminal investigation, security, and counterintelligence operations, gaining experience with interagency coordination and planning.

Lake previously served as a counterintelligence officer at the Idaho National Laboratory, advising senior officials on national security risks, guarding infrastructure and expanding intelligence programs, the release stated.

Lake graduated from Montana State University and earned her master’s degree in business administration from Boise State University. The release stated that she is currently attending the Command and Staff College through the Marine Corps University.

The release comes after current City Manager Tim Burton announced in September that he planned to retire at the end of this year, jumpstarting the commission’s process in finding his replacement.

That search sparked a lawsuit brought against the city by a former commissioner, who alleged that a commission subcommittee had violated Montana’s open meeting laws when initiating the recruitment process. The city responded to the lawsuit in November, claiming that the subcommittee, comprising City Mayor Wilmott Collins and Commissioner Sean Logan, had not violated any open meeting laws because the committee is not a “governmental body” or agency.

Additionally, the city also maintains that the lawsuit is void since the city revised its process to include all members of the commission in further meetings regarding the recruitment and hiring of the new city manager.

In a recent court filing, lawyers for the plaintiff have argued that the city’s change to involve all commission members does not resolve their original request for a preliminary injunction. They’ve also asked the court to disband the subcommittee.

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Montana

Evacuation orders issued as 5,000-acre wildfire burns near Roundup, Montana

Published

8 hours ago

February 27, 2026

Press Room

Evacuation orders issued as 5,000-acre wildfire burns near Roundup, Montana

ROUNDUP, Mont. —
The Rehder Creek Fire is burning 16 miles southeast of Roundup has grown to about 5,000 acres, prompting evacuation orders for residents in the Bruner Mountain Area/Subdivision.

The fire started Feb. 26, the cause is unknown and containment was at 0%.

Evacuation orders are in effect for all residents in the Bruner Mountain Area/Subdivision. The Musselshell County Sheriff’s Office is coordinating the evacuation orders, and 911 reverse calls have been sent out to advise people in the area.

A shelter is opening at the Roundup Community Center. Residents were told to contact Musselshell County DES for further information.

Firefighter and public safety remain the top priority. The public is asked to avoid the Fattig Creek and Rehder Road area so emergency personnel can safely and effectively perform their work.

Fire resources assigned to the incident include 40 total personnel, 11 engines, one Type 2 helicopter, three tenders and two dozers.

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Montana

February 26 recap: Missoula and Western Montana news you may have missed today

Published

20 hours ago

February 27, 2026

Press Room

February 26 recap: Missoula and Western Montana news you may have missed today

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Montana

Escobar, Jayapal, Members of Congress Call on Camp East Montana to be Shut Down – Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal

Published

1 day ago

February 26, 2026

Press Room

Escobar, Jayapal, Members of Congress Call on Camp East Montana to be Shut Down – Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal

(Washington, D.C.) – Today, Congresswoman Veronica Escobar (TX-16) – joined by Representative Pramila Jayapal, the Ranking Member of the Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement Subcommittee, and 22 other Members of Congress – sent a letter to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Acting Director Todd Lyons calling for the immediate closure of Camp East Montana in El Paso. They cite urgent humanitarian concerns following multiple deaths in custody, documented unsafe conditions, and serious deficiencies in medical care.

This marks the fourth letter Congresswoman Escobar has sent to DHS and ICE leadership. The previous three letters have gone unanswered.

The letter can be found in its entirety below and here.

“Secretary Noem and Acting Director Lyons:

We are urgently calling on the Department of Homeland Security (DHS or the Department) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to shut down Camp East Montana in El Paso, Texas.

Camp East Montana has been operational for six months, and at least three people have died at the site since December 2025: Francisco Gaspar-Andres, Geraldo Lunas Campos, and Victor Manuel Diaz. The El Paso County Medical Examiner has officially ruled Lunas Campos’ death a homicide, citing “asphyxia due to neck and torso compression.”

Camp East Montana was constructed in a matter of weeks and opened before construction was complete and it does not have enough federal staff on-site to provide adequate oversight. Over the last several months, Congresswoman Veronica Escobar, in whose district this facility is located, has sent multiple letters to DHS and ICE regarding concerns about the conditions at Camp East Montana, and has received no responses.

According to detainees, there have been constant and consistent problems at the facility since it opened, beginning with the facility’s poor construction and poor ambient temperature control. Upon opening, the drinking water at Camp East Montana tasted foul and made some detainees sick. Detainees continue to be served inadequate meals, including food that is rotten or frozen; last fall, the facility was also consistently failing to make dietary accommodations for detainees. Detainees have shared that they have sporadic access to outside spaces and recreational areas, and that their dormitory pods are cleaned only once every eight days, despite pods housing up to 72 people at a time. Laundry services are not consistent, and people are washing their clothes in the facility showers. Additionally, the facility experiences flooding and sewage backups when it rains, leading to stagnant water.

One of the biggest concerns with the Camp East Montana facility is the inadequate medical care being provided to detainees. Our offices have heard that only the most ill detainees are referred to the medical unit and that there are inconsistencies as to how soon after arriving detainees are able to undergo initial medical screenings. Detainees with chronic health issues who rely on regimented medications for their health have had difficulty accessing necessary medications, including blood pressure medication and insulin.

At least one of the deaths that occurred in ICE custody, the death of Francisco Gaspar-Andres, appears to partially be the result of poor medical care by staff at the facility. According to ICE’s own account, Gaspar-Andres sought medical attention from facility staff for increasingly serious symptoms, but was only transferred to an area hospital once his condition had severely deteriorated.

In addition to our concerns about poor medical care, we are also aware that detainees have experienced irregular access to their legal counsel, including instances of detainees having only two minutes allotted per phone call every 8 days, which is contrary to ICE’s Detention Standards on access to counsel, and that the belatedly created law library lacks adequate resources for the amount of people currently held at the facility. In January 2026, ICE announced the on-site death of Geraldo Lunas Campos “after experiencing medical distress.” ICE opened an investigation into the death, but did not provide a cause of death. However, The Washington Post later reported that another man detained at Camp East Montana had witnessed guards choking Lunas Campos when he refused to enter a segregated housing unit. Weeks later, the El Paso County Medical Examiner ruled that Lunas Campos had experienced “asphyxia due to neck and torso compression” and ruled his death a homicide.

Lunas Campos is the first detainee to die at Camp East Montana as a result of a use-of-force incident, but we are strongly concerned that he will not be the last if ICE is allowed to continue operating Camp East Montana.

ICE was given $45 billion in taxpayer dollars in the reconciliation bill, $1.2 billion of which were awarded to Acquisition Logistics, LLC, a company with no previous experience managing immigration detention facilities, to build and oversee Camp East Montana. However, in the wake of three deaths in custody so far, continued concerns about conditions at the facility, and ICE’s apparent disinterest in responding to oversight letters from Congress, we do not believe Camp East Montana is being run professionally or responsibly.

Camp East Montana must be shut down. For the safety of everyone at the facility, for an end to abuses to detainees, and for fiscal responsibility to the American people, the site cannot continue to operate. We are calling on DHS and ICE to move to immediately close operations at Camp East Montana.

We look forward to hearing from the Department promptly on this matter.

The other co-signers include Representatives Yassamin Ansari, Nanette Barragán, Yvette Clarke, Lloyd Doggett, Maxwell Frost, Jesús “Chuy” García, Sylvia Garcia, Daniel Goldman, Jimmy Gomez, Henry Johnson, Stephen Lynch, Seth Moulton, Eleanor Holmes Norton, Delia Ramirez, Andrea Salinas, Janice Schakowsky, Darren Soto, Rashida Tlaib, Paul Tonko, Lauren Underwood, Gabe Vasquez, and Nydia Velázquez.

Issues: Immigration

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