A new mayor took over the reins of the Lawrence City Commission, and three commissioners took the oath of office during a changing of the guard Tuesday night at City Hall.

Recently re-elected Commissioners Sue Hack and David Schauner took the oath of office along with newly elected Commissioner Mike Amyx.

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Amyx, a downtown barber, replaced David Dunfield, who did not run for re-election.

Boog Highberger, first elected to the commission two years ago, was selected as the new mayor during a unanimous vote by his fellow commissioners. Amyx was unanimously elected vice mayor.

Historically, the two top vote-getters have been selected by commissioners to receive one-year terms as mayor. That means Amyx should be mayor in April 2006 and Hack in April 2007.

Highberger promised the new commission was “going to hit the ground running” and tackle a lot of work ahead.

Dunfield stepped down from his commission seat, describing it as a “bittersweet occasion.” Dunfield, using a David Letterman format, also listed the 10 things he’d learned as commissioner. He also noted that the three most controversial issues during his tenure involved tobacco (smoking ban), fireworks (fireworks ban) and dogs (stricter vicious dog laws).