RSSSunnyside city manager hopefuls in town
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SUNNYSIDE -- Think of it as a combination of a mixer and a large-scale interview.
Residents of Sunnyside have a chance tonight to meet the four final candidates for their city's next manager.
They may introduce themselves, ask questions and make suggestions. They also can tell City Council members their choice through a comment card, if they wish.
"I want to see as much of the public there as possible," said Councilman Jim
Restucci.
The public "meet-and-greet," as it's called, will be from 5-7 p.m. at the Sunnyside Community Center, 1521 N. First St. It's one of several screening activities today and Friday for the four men seeking the chief administrative position of Yakima County's second largest city.
They are Mark J. Gervasi, city manager of Tillamook, Ore.; Mark Roath, city manager of McAlester, Okla.; Michael Stampfler, owner and managing partner of CivicQwest Consulting in Portage, Mich.; and Eric Swansen, village manager of Yellow Springs, Ohio.
The finalists also will mingle with city employees and be interviewed by both city council members and department heads today and Friday.
In Sunnyside's manager-council form of government, council members will make the decision on the manager, who will serve as the city's chief executive officer.
They plan to meet for a special meeting at 8:30 a.m. Saturday at the community center, where they will discuss the applicants in executive session. They may make a selection that day in an open meeting.
Whoever they pick will inherit a city in transition.
Sunnyside is working on a plan to switch from an at-large council voting system to one that picks council members for a combination of districts and at-large berths.
The city also passed the state's first gang ordinance last year, holds 150 acres of undeveloped industrial land purchased from the old Monson feedlot and is trying to engage in government a Hispanic population that makes up more than 70 percent of the city's population.
However, it's more important that the ultimate choice is good at communicating and addressing general concerns of the public, said Councilman Bill Gant.
"Those are more important to me than what they specifically bring to the table," Gant said.
The successful candidate also must manage a lean budget that may get leaner.
"It's just a fact of life," Gant said.
Council members generally believe they have four good candidates to choose from, Restucci said.
The next city manager will have to work well in all areas of government, Restucci said. They can't pick somebody just for their expertise in, say, economic development, if they don't get along with people.
"The biggest challenge they're going to have is being approachable," Restucci said.
The city has been without a manager since September, when the City Council asked Bob Stockwell to resign.
The four finalists were selected from among 29 applicants by city officials and community business leaders. The new city manager will be paid between $90,000 and $120,000.
Meet the candidates
* Mark J. Gervasi
Current position: City manager of Tillamook, Ore.
Previous positions: City administrator of Lafayette, Ore.; city administrator of Jefferson, Ore.
Education: Master's degree in public administration from Brigham Young University, bachelor's degree in history from Florida Atlantic University.
Notables: Past president of the Columbia Pacific Economic Development District, which administers loans to start-up businesses; led a $10.9 million upgrade of Tillamook's wasterwater treatment system.
* Mark Roath
Current position: City manager of McAlester, Okla.
Previous positions: City manager of Wylie, Texas; city manager for Oxford, Ohio; city administrator of North Platte, Neb.
Education: Law degree from the University of Tulsa, a master's degree in political science and public administration from Ohio University, a bachelor's degree in political science from the University of Montana.
Notables: Speaks Spanish, served in the U.S. Navy and was a Peace Corps volunteer in Costa Rica.
* Michael Stampfler
Current position: Owner and managing partner of CivicQwest Consulting in Portage, Mich., a consulting agency specializing in government performance improvement.
Previous positions: City manager of Casselberry, Fla.; city manager of Portage, Mich.; airport director in Kalamazoo, Mich.
Education: Master's degrees in public administration and international studies from Western Michigan University, bachelor's degree from Hope College.
Notables: Presided over the construction of the first outdoor refrigerated ice skating rink in Southern Michigan, initiated public and private partnership to develop a 70-acre industrial park in Portage.
* Eric Swansen
Current position: Village manager of Yellow Springs, Ohio.
Previous positions: City manager of Farmersville, Calif.; senior management analyst for Shoreline, Wash.; senior management analyst for the community development department of Deschutes County, Ore.
Education: Master's degree in public administration from University of Washington; bachelor's degree in political science from Pacific Lutheran University.
Notables: Led the passage of a five-year emergency levy in Yellow Springs to provide non-mandated services after the loss of the area's largest employer, interned at the U.S. Office of the Secretary of Defense.
* Ross Courtney can be reached at 930-8798 or rcourtney@yakimaherald.com.
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