Search firm presents city manager candidate list
 

After the former city manager was terminated in February, the city commission hired the search firm to assist in recruiting applicants, vetting them and then providing that list back to the City Manager Search Committee, who would, in turn, make recommendations to the city commission. That committee was made up of five community members, each of whom was appointed by a city commissioner.

Colin Baenziger said more than 60 people applied for the job and it narrowed those applicants down to nine. Those nine will now go to the committee, which will narrow the list down to five, who will be interviewed by the city commission. The city commission will then choose a new city manager from those five candidates.

• Andy Butterfield has been the operations manager for the city of St. Pete Beach (population 8,717) since 2019. He previously served as the director of Veteran Affairs at Brown University in Providence, R.I., for one year. Prior to that, he had a 36-year career in the U.S. Navy, serving most recently as Joint Base Deputy Commander Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, N.J., as well as Commander for Naval Support Activity at Lakehurst for three years. Butterfield has a bachelor’s degree in naval science and political science from the U.S. Naval Academy, a master’s degree in national security affairs from the U.S. Naval Post-Graduate School and a master’s degree in public administration from Harvard University, John F. Kennedy School of Government. The firm said one of Butterfield’s biggest achievements was knitting together disparate units and three previously separate military bases into one strong integrated team. While not favoring Butterfield over other candidates, the firm said the position of base commander is actually very similar to that of a city manager. Base commanders generally have a large budget and oversee almost all of the services as a city manager (fire, infrastructure, public works, utilities, parks and recreation, police and finance) plus a few others (such as base housing and logistics). “We have presented several retired military officers (including Howard Wanamaker as Clay County’s county manager and Scott Larese as Titusville’s city manager) who have been base commanders, and all have gone on to become extremely successful city managers / county administrators,” Colin Baenziger said.

• Kathleen Gunn recently worked for the city of Tamarac (population 70,943) for six years, serving the last two years as city manager. Previously she was the assistant city manager for the city of Miramar (population 140,316) for three years, the northeast director of development for Catholic Extension for two years and was with the city of Fort Lauderdale (population 169,270) for seven years, serving six of those years as assistant city manager. She has a bachelor’s degree in political science and master’s degree in public administration from Pace University and a master’s degree of pastoral ministry from St. Thomas University. Colin Baenziger said she has successfully managed teams that have constantly improved the delivery of vital programs and services while steering cities to find their niche, leverage their unique character and attract investors. She is proud of successfully leading the city of Tamarac through several crises, including managing viral police and commission incidents, hurricanes, a pandemic and the arrest of her predecessor, the firm’s report said.

• Tony Hammond is a Fernandina Beach native, having graduated from Fernandina Beach High School before pursuing a career in the Navy, where he obtained a bachelor’s degree in health care management from Southern Illinois University and a master’s degree in public administration from Troy State University. He is an International City/County Management Association (ICMA) credentialed manager. Hammond has been the city manager for Archer (population 1,144) since 2018. Previously he was the town manager for Ahoskie, N.C., (population 4,874) for 12 years and the city manager for Creedmoor, N.C., (population 3,128) for two years. Colin Baenziger said he is particularly proud of several projects that he helped develop the initial concept and carried through to planning and design and final construction. These included a $2.5 million state-of-the-art fire station, a $1.275 million state-of-the-art police station, a $17.5 million wastewater treatment plant and a $2 million recreational complex, all of which were completed on time and within budget.

• Dave Molgaard most recently was the chief of staff and Firm Administrator for Bailey & Glasser, LLP for four years. Previously he was the city manager for Charleston, W.Va., (population 47,929) for 16 years, a city council member in Charleston for four years and an attorney for 15 years. He has a bachelor’s degree in English, a master’s degree in industrial labor relations and a juris doctorate degree from West Virginia University. Colin Baenziger said when Molgaard first stepped into the role of city manager in Charleston, he found an organization with very siloed departments. The result was inefficiency and almost zero inter-departmental collaboration. During his tenure, the culture drastically changed, starting at the department head level. The result was a government that made great strides in cascading managerial initiative and accountability down to the middle managers and frontline supervisors.

• Mark Rooney recently served as the village administrator for Round Lake Beach, Ill., (population 27,081) for almost two years. Previously, he was the town manager for Westerly, R.I., (population 22,651) for three years, the village manager for Carpentersville, Ill., (population 38,291) for eight years and the chief of staff for North Chicago, Ill., (population 32,587) for one year. He also worked for Wheeling, Ill., (population 35,912) for six years, with the last three as village manager. He has a bachelor’s degree in education from the University of Nebraska. He has done coursework in the master’s degree program at Northern Illinois University but did not attain the degree and is an ICMA Credentialed Manager. Colin Baenziger said the greatest challenges facing Carpentersville in 2010 were a $1 million structural deficit, failing infrastructure (roads and water/wastewater facilities) and the need to address economic development. He created the slogan, “Get to YES.” The idea was to actively seek legal ways to solve residents’ and businesses’ problems, rather than just saying no. The result was the organization’s mindset was transformed from bureaucratic lethargy to that of engaged problem solvers. Employee morale skyrocketed as did the satisfaction of citizens and stakeholders (as measured by surveys and feedback from the community). As a consequence, the village also had a competitive edge in attracting local developers, businesses interested in relocating and businesses already in the village who needed to expand their operations.

• Ty Ross has been the city manager for Loudon, Tenn., (population 6,733) since 2017. Previously, he served as the city administrator for Dalton, Ga., (population 33,644) for seven years. He has a bachelor’s degree in history from the University of Georgia, a juris doctorate from Georgia State University and a master’s degree in business administration from Kennesaw State University and is an ICMA Credentialed Manager. Colin Baenziger said Ross is proud of his leading role in securing over a dozen acres of formerly dilapidated factories on Loudon’s downtown waterfront. The solution he designed and implemented with staff cleared all environmental hurdles and enabled the demolition and clearing of the property, which opened clear lake views. Ross was able to rebrand a factory’s former water tower into a dramatic welcome sign that announces to all visitors they have arrived at a special place. The project remains exceedingly successful and, though somewhat stalled by COVID-19, is well positioned for both residential and mixed-use commercial development in the coming months.

• Bill Schmeling was most recently the executive director for the Township of Ocean, N.J., Sewerage Authority, (population 27,814) for 14 years. Previously he was a qualified purchasing agent for the Borough of Bradley Beach, N.J., (population 4,198) for four years. He has a bachelor’s degree in psychology from St. John’s University, a master’s degree in business administration and a juris doctorate from Vanderbilt University. Colin Baenziger said Schmeling recommended changes to the way excess flow of sewage was sent for treatment from their largest service community was calculated at the Township of Ocean Sewerage Authority. The existing agreement provided for a set annual excess flow calculation based on a fixed gallon per day per building unit. For the authority’s treatment plant, yearly flow is not an issue, but daily flow can be an issue. The yearly approach was made worse by the fact that the service community’s population is not consistent year around, but it increased significantly in the summer months. He proposed that excess flow would be calculated on a daily basis, rather than a yearly basis, and charged accordingly. The resulting new agreement implemented a daily ceiling to determine excess flow, which increased revenue for the Authority.

• Bill Sturgeon was most recently with the city of St. Cloud, Fla., (population 64,489) for nine years, serving the last five years as city manager and four years prior as fire chief. Prior to that, he was a senior safety coordinator at Orlando Utilities Commission for two years. He has a bachelor’s degree in occupational safety and health from Columbia Southern University and a master’s degree in public administration from American Public University. He is a Certified Public Manager and an ICMA Credentialed Manager. Colin Baenziger said Sturgeon professionalized the staff and brought leadership stability to the city of St. Cloud, which set the city up for many years of success, and they are well equipped to address any future challenges that may occur. He was able to accomplish this transformation by emphasizing training/development, leadership by example and by engaging his team in problem-solving and decision-making processes – thus building a team of reliable professionals, the firm said.