City manager to leave Sisters

City Manager Brant Kucera announced last Wednesday he is resigning his position effective August 18. He has accepted a position as the city administrator in Ashland, Wisconsin, population 8,200, located on the shore of Lake Superior.

Kucera's son lives in Michigan and, when he was not yet in school, Kucera was able to have him live with him over half the year. Rhys is now in grade school and visits with him are not frequent or long enough. Being in Ashland will put Kucera only three hours away from his son.

"I want to be able to watch my son grow up," Kucera explained. "I feel that I am missing out on my son's life and have decided to move back to the Midwest in order to be closer to him. I want to assure you that this decision to move on is only for personal reasons."

Kucera said he is leaving with a heavy heart because "of the quality of the community - a very competent staff, a dedicated City Council, and welcoming citizens."

Kucera is upbeat about the condition of the City as he leaves.

"The City is in great shape fiscally. We've achieved a lot of our goals, and there's a lot more good to come," he indicated. "Council and staff's hard work and dedication have made this a great city, and no matter who sits in the Manager's office, it will continue to be a great city. We have a great team in place and employees who will make the transition successful."

Since Kucera's announcement, some citizens who have expressed disappointment that he was only here one year, after the City spent thousands of dollars on a national search to find a city manager. There is concern about having to go through the same process so soon and spend thousands more.

According to Mayor Chuck Ryan, who is heading up the process for finding a replacement, there will be no national search and no large expenditures of City funds. The City will be able to use the process employed in the search for Kucera as they recruit this time.

"I want to assure the citizens there won't be another costly search. We already are aware of several strong candidates," the Mayor said.

There will also be no interim City Manager like there was when Rick Allen stepped in after the resignation of Andrew Gorayeb.

At last week's City Council meeting, Kucera told Council, "I see no need for an interim manager. You have a very talented staff and the department heads can handle the day-to-day operations." He went on to explain, "In the long run, you need a City Manager to move the 'chess pieces' around the board, making sure all the pieces mesh."

Kucera also confirmed that staff is competent to handle existing projects and can explain them to Council.

He doesn't anticipate difficulty in finding a new city manager, which he encouraged Council to do "sooner rather than later."

"There is lots of talent around regionally. The City is well run, cohesive, and fiscally sound. You offer good compensation," Kucera told the Council.

Kucera offered advice for his replacement: "The new manager needs to realize there is a very competent staff. Don't mess with them."

And to Council he offered this advice: "It's not fair to your staff to wait a long time. Don't push the work of the manager off on staff too long. Develop the right process, advertise, recruit, interview, and hire."

The Council had high praise for Kucera. Council President Nancy Connolly said, "Because of the work you've done here, people will want to work here ... You have shown us what an experienced, capable City Manager looks like and what a competent, cohesive City Council looks like ... I applaud you for the choice you are making."

Councilor Andrea Blum said that when she attended a management staff meeting where they were informed of Kucera's departure, they had all been very complimentary of Kucera. She said, "I've never had such a pleasant experience. Everyone was very comfortable and expressed what a pleasure it is to work here (the City). I went home feeling so good." Blum reiterated that Kucera is "very highly respected here."

Kucera expressed his appreciation for the time he has spent here.

"My leaving has nothing to do with the City itself. I had the best support here that I've ever had in my career. The citizenry have been very kind and pleasant to interact with," Kucera said.

His major goal when he arrived 14 months ago was to get the City back in a positive place and he thinks he has accomplished that.

"When I leave organizations, I want to leave them better than when I arrived."

Kucera is confident Sisters will have no problem attracting a top-quality city manager because "the City is really moving in the right direction and good candidates recognize good government."

Kucera will assume his new position in Wisconsin as of August 27. His wife, Sandy, has already secured a teaching position there.