Hallowell’s three new City Council members are sworn in Thursday by City Clerk Lisa Gilliam in front of a crowd of family, friends and constituents. Ethan Horton/Kennebec Journal

HALLOWELL — Three new members of the City Council were sworn in Thursday evening, marking the beginning of a new era for a group that has been embroiled in budget controversy since late July.

At-Large Councilor Scott Cooper, Ward 1 Councilor Karen Knox and Ward 5 Councilor Lauren McPherson each ran unopposed for their seats in November. None of the incumbents ran for reelection amid resident pushback about the city’s 20% property tax increase and an ensuing struggle to cut the budget.

Hallowell City Hall’s upstairs auditorium was filled Thursday evening with family and friends of the new councilors. Cooper, who wore a red flower pinned to his shirt along with the other new councilors, smiled broadly at his family in the audience after he took his seat next to Mayor George Lapointe for the first time.

Along with Ward 3 Councilor Benjamin Gagnon, who was also elected in November but joined early to fill a vacant seat, the four newly elected members now make up a majority of the seven-person City Council.

The new members had been meeting regularly to discuss strategy and potential committee placements, Knox said in October. She said the group had especially focused on determining how to get more information from the city’s assessor in a timely fashion to avoid another budget crunch, and how to more effectively review the performance of City Manager Gary Lamb.

Mayor George Lapointe spoke at length about the recent budget challenges during his inaugural address Thursday. He said the new council should consider regionalizing some services, taking more time to review the final draft of the budget before approving it and widely publicizing budget meetings on the city’s social media pages over the next six months.

“I’ll guarantee it won’t be easy,” Lapointe said. “But we are committed to developing a lean budget while providing for ongoing services.”

Lapointe also mentioned the city’s flood recovery efforts in his speech — noting that one year ago, the city was still reeling from the impacts of a historic flood. Knox, the new Ward 1 councilor, led the downtown business advocacy group Vision Hallowell through the recovery period, raising more than $17,000 with the Hallowell Pride Alliance to give to businesses in need.

“Today, the fact that you can scarcely tell that Water Street flooded is a testament to the will and hard work of business owners, building owners, Hallowell residents, city government and others to keep our city vibrant,” Lapointe said.

The new City Council’s first business meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. Jan. 13 at Hallowell City Hall.