City interviews finalists

After more than six hours of interviews on Friday, the Kalispell City Council held a closed session to rank three finalists for the city manager job.

“We’ll discuss the applicants, rank them and talk about some negotiation points,” Mayor Tammi Fisher said going into the closed session.

The goal is to agree on a top candidate for the job and try to negotiate a contract on Monday. The city is working to fill the vacancy left by former City Manager Jane Howington, who resigned in January to take a job in Rhode Island.

“That will give [the candidates] a weekend, having visited Kalispell, to think about if this is somewhere they want to live,” Fisher said.

The three finalists for the city manager job are Doug Russell of Yankton, S.D.; Tom Steele of Pleasant Grove, Utah; and John Sutherland Jr. of Santa Fe, N.M.

All three toured Kalispell and met staff Wednesday, then attended a public reception Thursday at Conrad Mansion Museum.

Friday, each finalist came in for a formal interview with the council. Interviews lasted about 90 minutes.

The finalists were asked about their backgrounds, budgeting styles, how they promote cooperation among departments and deal with community opposition, how they negotiate with unions, how they work with a City Council, their communication styles and what they see as their strengths and weaknesses.

Here’s a brief rundown on some of the finalists’ responses to those questions:

Tom Steele, of Pleasant Grove, Utah

Having spent 30 years in the public sector, Steele, who is 65, has the most city management experience.He said he prioritizes tasks by the priorities of the City Council and the community and strives to be a “jack of all trades ... conversant on any subject in any department.”

He spoke in favor of long-term planning, identifying core city services and organizing the city budget by programs and priorities.

“Those priorities ... have to reflect the desires of the community. That’s what you’re here for,” Steele told the City Council. “I’m here to make sure every dollar is squeezed and we do as much as we can with the resources we have.”

Steele identified his responsiveness as a strength. As assistant city manager and then city manager in West Jordan, Utah, his last job, he dealt with a steep decline in revenues as fast growth in the city ground to a halt when the recession hit.

As a weakness, Steele said he was slow to leverage community volunteers until he saw a council member recruit people to help build a neighborhood playground.

“I learned that lesson. The city that leverages volunteer resources is much better prepared for a turnaround,” he said.

Steele had to go back a while for his last labor negotiation, calling it “baptism by fire.” He said he would approach such negotiations with transparency, “so we all understand what the resources are and are not.”

John Sutherland, of Santa Fe, N.M.

As someone with accounting experience, Sutherland, who is 63, focused on his financial background as a strength. Council saw that as a strength, too, with Kalispell’s finance director planning to retire in June.

Like Steele, Sutherland said he prioritizes tasks “by what is the hottest fire at the time” and the direction of council and the community.

The council would be heavily involved in any budget process, first focusing on identifying revenues. How the pie is split up would be the council’s directive.

“I gather that is some work the council itself has not yet done, deciding what the priorities are of the city,” Sutherland said.

“That is work that really needs to be done.”

Governments can be prone to a gradual broadening of their mission, and with community input should identify and prioritize core services and work to make them as efficient as possible, Sutherland said. He prided his ability to find and cut slack from budgets.

“In Tucumcari, I was hired May 12. The budget was due by May 31. In that time, working with the finance director, we put together a complete budget that was balanced, but also found the money to provide a $2 an hour across the board salary increase for every police officer,” he said.

Sutherland worked with consolidated 911 centers in Tucumcari, N.M. and Luna County, N.M. He said he would push to make sure any joint activities Kalispell is involved in are running as efficiently as possible.

Sutherland said he takes a collaborative and cooperative approach to managing departments and labor negotiations.

“We have a mutual problem to solve. ... That’s my approach. We’re in this together.”

Doug Russell, of Yankton S.D.

The youngest finalist, Russell, who is 38, was asked most about his economic development efforts as city manager of Yankton.

Over the past year Russell said he has worked on downtown revitalization plans, worked to foster the development of a new home-improvement store and negotiate a contract and salary plan with a new bargaining unit — all while dealing with day-to-day activities.

Russell spoke in favor of community surveys for feedback on city performance, community input to guide planning efforts, and 10-year budget forecasts to help guide decision-making.

“Governments often work on a one-year budget ... We’re looking 10 years out at how decisions will impact us. It’s been a great tool,” he said.

Council members questioned whether Russell could make some of the same economic development projects work in Kalispell, where unemployment is higher and there is no sales tax.

Public participation and ideas have driven many of the economic development projects in Yankton, Russell said.

“If it’s a strong project, you’ll find creative ways. You just look at the resources and tools available. You put all the tools on the table and find a package that really works,” he said.

With Kalispell facing airport issues, Russell was asked about Chan Gurney Municipal Airport in Yankton.

The airport has always been managed by the city, and did not have a true fixed-base operator leasing land from the city.

“We had a contract we paid for someone to provide services,” he said.

That contract was not renewed last fall, after new parameters for a request-for-proposal were reached. Russell said he sees a lot of potential for the airport.

“Under the old arrangement, it was a one-sided benefit. Now revenue is coming back to the city, for us to invest back in it ... We envision in the next five to 10 years 20 to 40 more planes housed there, driving more airfield businesses and more revenue-generating things.”

Reporter Tom Lotshaw may be reached at 758-4483 or by email at tlotshaw@dailyinterlake.com.