By Brenna Wiegand
As the period for applications to the position of Silverton City Manager draws to a close, the city council as a whole is satisfied that, with much assistance from hired recruitment firm Waldron, it did all it could to involve the public in this weighty process.
In addition to the good response to an online survey, Waldron held a town hall meeting Aug. 22. At its start, Mayor Stu Rasmussen told the group, “We want to cast as wide a net as we possibly can and we want to get as much community input as possible in the process.” The ultimate decision belongs to the city council.
Waldron staff spent September and the first half of October networking, actively recruiting and advertising the position and will present its top candidates to council Oct. 24.
By the end of October the interviews will be under way, at which the community will have an opportunity to meet the final candidates and provide input once more. The process ought to be completed up by Christmas – or even Thanksgiving.
Compiling the traits citizenry desires in its next manager was a task not taken lightly. Waldron conducted interviews with around 30 key stakeholders in town who represent the various communities of the city as to key personal traits, background and abilities that would best serve the needs of Silverton and to identify key opportunities ahead for both city and city manager. Also polled was city council and city staff.
As in the personal interviews, Silverton’s recent conflicts were a common theme during the town hall meeting.
Karla Verbeck started the testimony, stressing the importance of hiring someone with prior experience mediating community problems, “…where you have some folk who are passionate one way and some folk passionate another way, and has some experience with crafting a compromise. …the new manager will be dumped into that without preparation and will be expected to deal with it Day 1…” and “…someone who’s not going to mind being stopped on the street while having a cup of coffee and be talked at.”
Local artist Ann Altman spoke up for the arts community, saying she hopes the supportive relationship the arts community has shared with the city will continue; and that art and the arts will be included in plans for economic development.
Several people were adamant the person hired not come from a big city, bringing in a suburban or big city perspective, nor the desire to “turn Silverton into a Tigard or Lake Oswego simply for a tax base.”
Gregg Sheesley said greater volunteerism from young people from grade school through high school would greatly help in bringing about “true community … a lightning rod ability to … identify and bring forth; explore opportunities for these young minds.”
Lawrence Stone drew applause in his plea for someone who looks for ways to “close the gap rather than ‘How do we make sure we maintain the gap.’” He suggested a number of direct questions he would like Waldron to ask the candidates.
“The task that we have at hand is really a quite large task,” said Jim Squires, who, two weeks before, gained permission to petition for the recall of the four city councilors who voted in favor of ‘Concept 2’ as the model for Phase 1 of Silverton’s Streetscape Enhancement Project. The petition filing deadline is Nov. 8.
“Probably the most important trait the city manager should have is the ability to communicate with the citizens on a one-on-one, neighborhood-type level and … find out what the citizens want so that we don’t continue to go through damage control … a progressive way to put unity back into the community.”
Victor Madge, planning commission chair and local architect, specified the need for a candidate with experience in urban renewal districts, especially in light of Silverton’s being in its infancy.
“It’s slated for the next 15 years and has to be shepherded through,” he said, adding the candidate should possess good experience with planning issues, be a people person and be a visible, approachable presence among Silverton’s various civic groups, the Chamber of Commerce and the citizenry at large.
Strong relationships with staff and elected officials; an understanding and ability to move forward in remedying the city’s aging infrastructure; encouraging further economic development and refining and completing the city’s parks system were among the specifications in the completed profile, viewable at the City of Silverton Web site along with regular updates on the recruitment’s progression.
Starting salary for the job ranges from $95,000 to $110,000.
