McHenry Times

City of Harvard Committee of the Whole met July 12.

Here are the minutes provided by the committee:

Mayor Kelly called the meeting to order at 6:31 pm. Aldermen present: Haderlein, Schulz, Lavallee, Carncross, Gorman, Meza and Perkins. Alderwoman Luna was absent. Also present: Treasurer/Finance Director Bejot, Charles Eldredge and members of the audience.

PUBLIC COMMENT

None

HEDC PRESENTATION

Mayor Kelly related that the HEDC has been dissolved. Charles Eldredge was the Executive Director of the HEDC and will continue to work in a similar capacity under the City as a consultant until the organizational structure is in place under a new City Administrator. Mayor Kelly would like to change the Community Development Committee to the Community and Economic Development Committee to bring economic development under the umbrella of that committee.

Charlie gave brief description of his background and education as an economist and planner and gave an overview of what economic development involves and referred to his handout, as attached. He related that close to 80% of economic development is encouraging companies that are already here to stay here and expand. A recent example in Harvard is Pedigree Ovens who was presented with an incentive package with a lot of help of the county and state similar to what Wisconsin was offering. As a result, Pedigree Ovens remained in Harvard and they are now going through their 3rd expansion since they built the new plant and expect to double again in the next few years. They currently employ around 300 employees.

CITY ADMINISTRATOR POSITION

The City Council reviewed the Administrator Hiring Process handout as attached. The focus of the meeting will be to complete the Administrator Profile and Advertise for Position.

Complete Administrator Profile

• Compensation range $125,000 - $160,000

• Preferred Qualifications

The selected candidate should possess a genuine passion for public service, with strong, working knowledge of local government operations in areas such as economic development, capital improvement and municipal finance. A record of responsible supervisory experience and the familiarity of working in a diverse and growing community is essential. Candidates should also possess a strong ability for leadership, personal and professional ethics, and a collaborative and team-oriented approach.

o A Master’s Degree in Public Administration or related field preferred with at least 5 years of responsible experience in municipal functions, services, operations and applicable laws.

o Considerable knowledge of the principles and practices of public administration, finance, human resources, administrative functions.

o Skill in managing and facilitating meetings internally as well as with the general public.

o Skill in the ability to manage a variety of complex projects and programs simultaneously while meeting deadlines.

o Ability to research and think creatively to bring innovative solutions and ideas to the organization and community.

o Ability to analyze situations and make difficult and reasoned decisions.

o Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with elected officials, department heads, employees and the public.

o Fluency in Spanish desired.

o Charlie Eldredge will draft a bullet point for economic development.

o Community involvement.

o Technology qualifications; understanding of software capabilities and social media.

o Capability to speak to media without compromising the City’s liabilities.

o Embraces documentation

• Preferred Management Style

o Be a clear and concise communicator with an open, friendly and calm demeanor.

o Be a highly motivated, goal-oriented leader with a proven ability to quickly earn respect, gain cooperation and communicate clear direction. Be able to give and take constructive criticism.

o Be a critical analyst and creative thinker. Be imaginative in solving problems, encouraging and empowering employees to find new and better ways to get work done.

o Have the ability to set high standards of performance, productivity and initiative by Departmental personnel; be comfortable in recommending and administering disciplinary actions if necessary.

o Be proactive, anticipatory and innovative; be someone who can make difficult decisions and stand behind those decisions.

• Advertise for Position

There was discussion of language that was included in the Marengo 2021 job posting that would be advantageous for the potential candidates:

o Challenges and Opportunities outlines Administrator expectations based on the status of the City and future planning already in place. The Mayor would like to provide an outline to the candidates that indicates some of the bigger things that the City has going on such as the WWTP upgrade and the pending retirement of various department heads. The Mayor would like to also include links that the candidates need to review such as the Capital Improvement Plan, UDO, Budget, Comprehensive Land Use Plan, Strategic Vision, etc.

o Candidate Qualification Criteria combines the qualifications, qualities and management style based on Challenges and Opportunities that candidates should possess.

Finance Director Bejot will draft the job posting based on the City Council COW discussion to be presented at the July City Council meeting. Once compiled and approved, the job can be published on the website in August and in various associations which will direct candidates to the City’s website:

• International City Managers Association

• Illinois City Managers Association

• Wisconsin City Managers Association

• Illinois Municipal League

Mayor Kelly indicated that the interview process would be similar to the police chief position. He would like to interview the top 10% of the candidates and narrow it down to bring 3-5 candidates to the City Council/Committee to be interviewed. After discussion, the consensus was to conduct the interviews before the Committee of the Whole so the aldermen are equally involved, perhaps on a Saturday.

Future Committee of the Whole Committee Meeting Agendas will include a line item for New Business. An agenda item will be included on July’s City Council Agenda to discuss using a percentage of the funds from the sale of the Northfield/Route 14 property for downtown beautification. A future COW Meeting will discuss an overall arts plan for the City.

A motion by Alderman Schulz, seconded by Alderman Meza to adjourn the meeting. All ayes. Motion carried.

https://www.cityofharvard.org/sites/default/files/fileattachments/city_council/meeting/14618/minutescow2022-07-12.pdf