City Administrator (CA) Tina Volek retired on September 30, 2017.  The City Council approved Bruce McCandless as the Interim CA. The Council hired the Mercer Group to recruit a replacement CA and on December 1, 2017 the Council selected Great Falls City Manager Greg Doyon to be the next CA.  Negotiations ensued but were unsuccessful and Mr. Doyon withdrew from consideration.  The Council agreed that it would discuss how it would proceed with hiring at its January 22, 2018 meeting.  At that meeting, the Council considered several alternatives and approved negotiating a short term employment agreement with Mr. McCandless and requested a schedule for hiring a permanent replacement.  After tabling the item at its February 12 meeting, the Council agreed to discuss the agreement at its February 20 work session and act on it at the February 26 meeting.  The draft Agreement, reviewed and approved by the Council's contract attorney, Tom Singer, and the proposed schedule are attached.

City Council may approve, amend or disapprove the employment agreement and should direct staff on the recruiting schedule.

The proposed annual salary and benefits are contained in the agreement.  The FY 18 budget will cover the costs.  Recruiting expenses depend on the recruiting method and schedule that the Council selects, but could range from $5,000 - $35,000.  Contracting with Mercer Group to complete the recruitment or having staff manage the process are the least expensive options.  The more expensive option would be to hire a new recruiting firm.  All of the methods will require staff support, time and expenses.

Staff recommends that the City Council approve an employment agreement with Bruce McCandless and approve a recruiting method and schedule for hiring a permanent City Administrator.