Columbia Falls' new city clerk and treasurer already has close ties to the community. In fact, he refereed the Wildkat-Lady Bulldog basketball game at Columbia Falls High School on Jan. 14.

Todd Watkins has 27 years of experience in government and has known Columbia Falls city manager Susan Nicosia since the mid 1980s when they were both state auditors for the Montana Department of Commerce - she in Missoula, he in Kalispell

Watkins, who grew up in Laurel and has been in the Flathead Valley since 1984, graduated from Rocky Mountain College, in Billings. He hired on for the part-time, four-days-a-week Columbia Falls position and began working Jan. 5.

The city had advertised for the city clerk position since Nicosia moved into the city manager's office to replace Bill Shaw. The position eventually was changed to make it easier to fill. Watkins said Nicosia will continue to be the city's finance director, while he will take over the treasurer's duties.

Watkins most recently "retired" after 17 years with School District 5 in Kalispell, where he was the school clerk and director of operations and business services. He served in a similar capacity in Whitefish for four years.

Married with two grown children, Watkins is an avid fisherman and hunter and a big fan of Montana State University. His son Beau Watkins played football with the Bobcats for three years.