New City Administrator Search Advances

The city council and the Mayor's advisory search committee met jointly on Monday evening and approved the posting of the city administrator position with a salary range of $80,000 to $90,000. A healthy salary, but in line with the market. The job closes on August 17. The advisory search committee will meet on August 23. The field will be narrowed first to 10 and then to 4 candidates (that's the plan anyway) and then an in-person interview process will select the next administrator, hopefully by October.

The city council also raised the finance director's salary to $70,000 (plus $1,000 per month bonus while he serves as acting administrator).

These two salary moves will bring some of our executive salaries more in line with the market. We historically have tended to be on the low side, a penny-wise, pound-foolish approach, IMHO. As Alder Thomas pointed out the other night, spending an another $5,000 to get a better candidate may help avoid a $20,000 mistake.