The Kent City Council unanimously voted Dennis Higgins as council president at its Tuesday meeting.

Following the ceremony and welcoming of new council members Bill Boyce and Dana Ralph, the council picked Higgins as president for the next two years. Councilwoman Jamie Perry was the previous president.

Higgins stated at the meeting he would be an, “honest broker with my colleagues, with the administration and the public. I promise to ask questions, sometimes a lot. I will listen carefully to everyone’s concerns and work collaboratively to find solutions.”

Higgins first action in his new position was to name the chairs and members on the council committees.

The Public Works Committee chair will be Elizabeth Albertson with Higgins and Ralph as members.

Deborah Ranniger was named chair of the Parks and Human Services committee and the other members are Albertson and Ralph.

The Economic and Community Development Committee chair will be Perry and the members are Ranniger and Boyce.

The Public Safety Committee chair will be Boyce with Les Thomas and Ralph serving as members.

Thomas will be chair of the Operations Committee with members Higgins and Perry.

The Kent Regional Fire Authority Board members from the council will be Higgins, Thomas and Boyce.

The council president position is chosen by a vote of the council every two years. The duties of the council president include setting the meeting agendas in coordination with the mayor.

Boyce reportedly is the first African-American to serve on the Kent City Council. A check of the records back to 1975 indicate Boyce to be the first African-American elected. The city and The Reporter will continue to research the issue.

Boyce served on the Kent School Board prior to winning the seat in November by beating incumbent Debbie Raplee.