Casper City Council Tentatively Chooses Steve Freel for Mayor in 2020

Casper City Council tentatively decided that council member Steve Freel will be the mayor for 2020 in a straw poll during a work session on Tuesday.

The council chose Freel by five votes, or a supermajority of the nine council members.

Council also tentatively chose Khyrstyn Lutz for vice mayor.

The council will need to formally approve its new leaders at its first meeting in January.

The council also tentatively decided to raise the mayor’s stipend to the statutorily allowed maximum o f$300 for each meeting.

This decision will need to pass three readings by the end of the year to go into effect in 2020, City Attorney John Henley said.

Some council members said this is just a token for the work that the mayor does, and nobody's getting rich.

Mayor Charlie Powell said that it also would do a little to encourage younger people to run for council because it’s easier for older and/or retired people to serve because they do not have the obligations of work and family.