A special election for an at-large seat on the Fort Dodge City Council will be acted upon by the governing body tonight.

The council is scheduled to approve a resolution asking Webster County Auditor Doreen Pliner to schedule the vote early next year. The council’s action will be in response to a petition signed by about 440 people.

The council’s meeting will begin at 5 p.m. tonight in the Municipal Building, 819 First Ave. S.

First on the agenda are a pair of workshops. One will be about the Kosovo youth exchange; the other will be an update on Main Street Fort Dodge.

The council’s regular business meeting will begin at 6 p.m. That’s when the special election matter will be considered.

The chain of events that led to the resolution on tonight’s agenda began in October when former Councilman Neven Conrad resigned to become the Humboldt County magistrate. He had a little over a year left on his four-year term.

Acting on the suggestion of Mayor Matt Bemrich, the council appointed Andy Fritz, who had previously served on the council for 10 years, to the seat vacated by Conrad.

In response, Richard Higgins and Eugene Newsome, two Fort Dodge residents who have repeatedly run for council seats and repeatedly lost, circulated the petition, which was submitted this week. Because the petition includes more than the required number of signatures, the council has no choice but to request the special election.

That election will be held in February or March. It is expected to cost the city about $20,000.

Fritz will remain on the council until the winner of the special election is certified. He is eligible to run in the election.

The winner of the special election will have to run again in the November 2023 general election for a full term on the council.

In other business tonight, the council is expected to award a contract for major repairs to Veterans Bridge on First Avenue South. The work would begin next spring.