New 911 center director hired

A new director for Flathead County’s consolidated 911 center has been hired. Elizabeth Brooks started work on Aug. 19.

Brooks worked for more than a decade as a dispatcher and 911 center director in Williamsport, Ind., according to Mike Shepard, a Columbia Falls city councilor and 911 center administrative board member.

The hiring process for a new director started in May. Initially skeptical about the applicants, Shepard said he’s satisfied with the decision to hire Brooks.

“She understands interactions with various groups, the reporting requirements, she has been very instrumental in reducing overtime, and as you know that is one of our problems,” he said.

Brooks, who will be the 911 center’s fourth director since it opened just a few years ago, was born and raised in Missoula. She replaces Roger LaFerriere, who resigned earlier this year after six months on the job.

Flathead County Sheriff Chuck Curry said Brooks should bring the right mix of experience and enthusiasm to the job.

“She has experience managing a 911 center that is a combined center much like this one,” he said. “So even though she’s from a smaller populated area in the Midwest, the center she managed worked with multiple jurisdictions and political entities, including two counties. So she brings to the table that experience in dealing with all these political subdivisions and bringing people together to try to move forward.”

The 911 administrative board will hold a special work session Aug. 28 to work through a two-page list of concerns about the 911 center submitted by the Kalispell City Council and Kalispell mayor Tammi Fisher.

In their letter, the Kalispell city council questioned the amount of information made available online about 911 center meetings and finances, the 911 center budget approval process, the number of administrative board representatives, the board’s meeting times, operational oversight and the status of a long-term funding plan.