Ypsilanti narrows city manager candidates to 3; decision expected Monday
Ypsilanti City Council narrowed the number of potential city manager candidates from five to three at its meeting Thursday night.
Council decided that City Clerk Frances McMullan, who is currently serving as interim city manager; Grosse Pointe Shores City Manager Brian Vick, and Ralph Lange, executive director of the Henry County (Ohio) Improvement Corp., would move onto the next round of interviews.
They will be interviewed in an open session at 6 p.m. Monday in City Hall. Council members plan to make a decision right after the interviews conclude Monday.
Mayor Pro-Tem Lois Richardson briefly advocated for including Jered Ottenwess, city manager in Ishpeming, Mich., but no one else supported his candidacy. Ottenwess is a former City of Ypsilanti intern who also has served as the Trenton, Fla., city manager.
Council had initially aimed to decide on a manager during the meeting Thursday, but members decided to take more time to come to a unanimous decision on one candidate.
“I do believe that is a decision I would like to see us be unanimous on,” Mayor Pro-Tem Lois Richardson said.
Council Member Ricky Jefferson said that with a job of such importance, the Council has to be sure its decision is the right one.
“Too accomplish what we need here is going to take a lot; it’s going to take vision,” Jefferson said. “They’re going to have to understand the dynamic of the city.”
Former Ypsilanti City Manager Ed Koryzno left for a job in the state Treasury Department.
Comments
deepthroat
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 9:53 p.m.
Thanks for the link on Brian Vick's status, Ypsidoodle: http://grossepointe.patch.com/articles/grosse-pointe-shores-city-manager-quits Some of the resident comments are very telling! Lets hope Mr. Murdock and fellow council members do their homework on this guy!
Ypsidoodle
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 2:04 p.m.
Is this article going to be corrected to reflect the current situation? Also too, I see no mention here of the fact that on numerous occasions during Thursday's meeting on this issue it was brought up by several members of the council that candidates nearing the end of their careers weren't going to be considered... sounds almost like age discrimination???
Katrease Stafford
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 2:33 p.m.
Hi Ypsidoodle, I was trying to obtain clarification from Mayor Schreiber before I responded to your question. Schreiber confirmed with me this morning that Frances McMullan has withdrawn herself from consideration. When more details become available as to why, we will provide more information.
neighbor
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 2:03 p.m.
It's hard to believe this council isn't considering Ottenwess given his experience and success dealing with problematic budgets during down times. With Vick's sudden resignation in Gross Point he should be investigated thoroughly before being considered. I agree with Chris Herrick below. Ypsi needs vision and youth. It looks like the council is choosing to keep Ypsi as the struggling sidekick to Ann Arbor-Good luck.
chris herrick
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 11:32 a.m.
Mayor Pro-Tem Lois Richardson had vision when she advocated for Ottenwess. Which candidate already has experience with Ypsilanti? Ottenwess. He matriculated right next door at the University of Michigan too. He is experienced and he's in your backyard, in Ishpeming. Plus I think he's the youngest candidate. Youthful vision may be what Ypsilanti needs to avoid faltering as it steps into the future. Good luck Ypsi.
Ypsidoodle
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 2:08 p.m.
Youthful vision is great... youthful missteps, not so much. Ypsilanti is in a very critical phase right now and we need a combination of vision and experience. I support any candidate that fulfills the qualifications and dedicates their efforts 100% to this city and it's great people. I would love to see the CV's of these folks and compare them to the posting the city put out for the job... I would also love to hear the logic behind both.
Pete Murdock
Fri, May 11, 2012 : 10:48 p.m.
Ms. McMullen has withdrawn from consideration. We will be having second interviews with Mr. Vick and Mr. Lange on Monday.
Ypsidoodle
Fri, May 11, 2012 : 10:58 p.m.
Was any reason given as to why McMullen withdrew?
greg, too
Fri, May 11, 2012 : 9:45 p.m.
How is McMullen still a candidate? Must be a weak pool
Ypsidoodle
Fri, May 11, 2012 : 9:48 p.m.
According to the city agenda, she's not. According to the council meeting last night and this article, she is. Still haven't gotten a straight story on this one...
Ypsidoodle
Fri, May 11, 2012 : 8:56 p.m.
Also too, please go on the City of Ypsilanti website as the agenda for the Monday, May 14th interviews only lists Vick and Lange but not McMullen. As well, the meeting starts at 7 pm per this agenda.
Ypsidoodle
Fri, May 11, 2012 : 8:45 p.m.
Um, I believe Vick is no longer the Grosse Point Shores city manager as he suddenly resigned under questionable circumstances back on March 3rd... fact check please.
YpsiVeteran
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 3:07 a.m.
http://grossepointe.patch.com/articles/grosse-pointe-shores-city-manager-quits
Cash
Fri, May 11, 2012 : 6:01 p.m.
"Mayor Pro-Tem Lois Richardson briefly advocated for including Jered Ottenwess, city manager in Ishpeming, Mich., but no one else supported his candidacy. Ishpeming is a former City of Ypsilanti intern who also has served as the Trenton, Fla., city manager." Ishpeming is the name of the city, not the candidate.
G-Man
Sat, May 12, 2012 : 12:35 p.m.
Too accomplish what we need......?????? Too?
Julie Baker
Fri, May 11, 2012 : 6:06 p.m.
Thanks, that has been corrected.
xmo
Fri, May 11, 2012 : 4:05 p.m.
If you have a city manager, why do you need a mayor?
ahi
Fri, May 11, 2012 : 6:13 p.m.
The mayor is more of a council chair and figurehead for the city. As far as I know he takes no salary. The city manager handles the day to day operations. The council provides policy and budget guidance for the city manager.