Yacolt reconfirms Battle Ground councilor to C-Tran board

The town of Yacolt has changed course again in choosing its representation for the C-Tran Board of Directors.

The Yacolt Town Council decided Monday night to reconfirm longtime C-Tran board member Bill Ganley, a Battle Ground city councilor.

Yacolt had originally confirmed Ganley to the position in November before the Town Council reneged on that agreement in December. In a December 18 letter to C-Tran, town officials said they wanted their own representation on the board and picked Town Councilor Lewis Gerhardt to fill the position.

At Monday’s meeting, attended by Ganley and Battle Ground Mayor Lisa Walters, the Yacolt Town Council reversed its December decision and voted 4-1 to reappoint Ganley. Town Councilor Vince Myers voted against Ganley’s appointment.

Gerhardt will serve as Ganley’s alternate on the nine-member board. Both Ganley and Gerhardt will attend tonight’s C-Tran meeting at 5:30 p.m.

C-Tran’s representatives for the small cities must be jointly confirmed by their respective councils each year. Camas and Washougal share one seat on the board, as do Ridgefield and La Center, and Battle Ground and Yacolt.

Walters said the back and forth between Yacolt and Battle Ground boiled down to a lack of communication between the two communities.

She said the cities needed to talk together more, so they could meet the transportation needs of Clark County’s rural areas.

“We need to stick together as four cities,” Walters said, “and we need to come together as a united front.”