City council appoints Jeff Keating for Position 7

DAYTON — City of Dayton Mayor Michael Smith called the Dayton City Council to order at 6 p.m. on July 14, 2026. Council members Shannon McMillen, James Su’euga, Kyle Anderson, Joann Patras, and Dave Harvey were present; Glenn Hagfeldt was not in attendance.

In public comment, a resident said he and his neighbor thought the new road striping on Main Street was great. Belinda Larsen, the Chamber of Commerce Director, said that the success of All Wheels Weekend was due to community involvement, and gave a shout-out to the Columbia County Fairgrounds and the Sheriff’s Department.

The council approved the consent agenda, which contained routine administrative items.

Next, the council interviewed the sole candidate, Jeffrey Keating, for the vacant Position 7 on the council. After the interview, the council went into executive session to discuss the candidate. After resuming the regular meeting, the council unanimously approved Keating to fill the Position 7 term through December 31, 2029.

The council passed Resolution 1599, allowing cash transactions to be rounded to the nearest five-cent increment. The new policy is set to take effect in September, after banks stop issuing pennies.

The council discussed potential topics for the next workshop. Su’euga suggested animal control. Anderson wanted to include fireworks after receiving at least 10 phone calls from residents about them. He said there was a lot of confusion over the issue. The next workshop was set for Tuesday, 28 July, at 3 p.m.

Ryan Paulson, Public Works Director, opined that he was unable to do much when a particular animal is a nuisance or a biter. He can issue a Municipal Court summons, but cannot impound nuisance animals, only loose animals. He is looking at other forms of animal control or public warnings of dangerous animals.