Moll to fill vacated Polson City Commission seat
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POLSON — Come January, the Polson City Commission will have a familiar face with a lot of experience.
Brodie Moll, 67, will join the ruling body along with incoming Mayor Paul Briney. They will replace Ken Siler (Ward 3) and Heather Knutson, respectively.
Moll was chief executive officer at Mission Mountain Enterprises in Ronan from 1987 to 2016.
The Dixon, Illinois, native said he began working with people with disabilities as a summer job when he was in high school.
After college — where he earned a degree in political science from Western Illinois University — Moll moved to Montana where he worked at the Montana Developmental Center in Boulder for two years.
He then worked for the city manager of Great Falls for a year, chaired a local government review committee in Conrad and has been the CEO of other non-profits too, he said.
When he began working at Mission Mountain Enterprises, the non-profit had only one building. Today they have nine: four in Ronan and three in Polson, including a thrift store in each location.
MME went from 30 to 150 employees and the budget increased from some $300,000 to $4 million, he said.
The organization, which he said is largely funded by state and federal Medicaid dollars, was serving 25-30 people when he started. When he left they had about 60-70, he said.
In his own words, Moll has “a lot of experience developing community services.”
He has served on the Polson Chamber of Commerce and the Lake County Housing Development Board.
But he has always had an interest in politics and government and notes that others in his family have served in that capacity over the years.
TIF district
Moll would like to see the city better utilize its tax increment financing, or TIF, district, which is funded by a tax on businesses.
The city has used its TIF district to fund a walkway underneath the Armed Forces Memorial Bridge, a pier restoration, new sewer lines and a streetscape, he said.
He notes that on Jan. 17, 2018, the city commission will consider approving a process whereby citizens or businesses can apply for TIF district funds, which are to be used for blighted areas downtown.
Overall, Moll said he believes the city is being run efficiently and effectively.
“We’ve got a good professional staff, good employees and a commission,” he said. “I want to help make Polson a better place to live, work and play.”
His first official meeting as a commissioner will be Wednesday, Jan. 3 at 7 p.m.
