BAXTER-With one potential candidate taking an offer from another city, the Baxter City Council agreed to bring up an alternate to keep their finalist list at five.
The decision came after a split vote ended in a tie on whether the council should bring in both alternates and interview six candidates or add one alternate to keep the list at five finalists.
Last week, the Willmar City Council offered the position of city administrator to Isaac Holland, who was also a finalist for the city administrator's post in Baxter. Tuesday, Baxter City Council members learned Holland accepted an offer from another city.
The Baxter City Council originally picked five finalists for interviews and two alternates.
Council member Steve Barrows said he wanted to keep the number of candidates where the council set it earlier at five and move one up for consideration. The two alternates gained the same number of votes from the council when candidates were initially ranked but the council did create a priority list between them. Council member Quinn Nystrom said she'd rather err on the side of caution and extend the interview invitation to both alternates as the council doesn't know if another candidate may drop out before the interviews are conducted in March. Council member Mark Cross said he could see both sides and didn't have a strong opinion either way. Mayor Darrel Olson noted there is a cost associated with interviewing the candidates with a travel stipend offered.
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Cross offered to change the number of candidates to be interviewed to six. Nystrom seconded the motion. Barrows and Olson voted against. Council member Todd Holman was absent Tuesday leaving the vote at 2-2.
As a compromise, Brad Person, city attorney, suggested the council could extend the interview to the first alternate and agree the second alternate would move into the list of finalists if any of the remaining candidates dropped out. The council voted in favor of that idea at 3-1 with Nystrom opposed.
With the vote, another candidate-Darcy D. Long, city administrator/zoning administrator with the city of Amery, Wis.-was added to the list of finalists in the wake of Holland dropping from consideration.
The other finalists are Bradley D. Chapulis, Nathan A. Ehalt, Kevin Opple and Carroll Vizecky. Candidate interviews are planned March 17 and 18. The first day will involve interviews with candidates and city department heads followed by a casual dinner gathering. The Baxter City Council plans to formally interview each candidate March 18.
Long has been with the city of Amery since 2008. Prior to that he was town manager in Markle, Ind., from 2005 to 2008 and interim village manager at the Village of Cass City, Mich., for a few months in 2005. Previously, Long was city manager in Brown City, Mich., from 2003 to 2004 and was city manager of Booker, Texas, from 2000 to 2003.
Long has a master's degree in public administration from Northern Michigan University, a bachelor's in political science from Lake Superior State College and public manager certification from Texas Tech University.
