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Search for Sidney city manager progresses

Interviews set for end of month

A short list of three to four candidates has been identified to fill the vacant Sidney city manager position.

Sidney Mayor Mark Nienhueser offered an update on the search process at a city council meeting on Tuesday evening. The position has been open since Gary Person resigned in August.

In October, the city council approved using to services of Texas-based J.D. Gray Group, an executive recruitment firm. The company is being paid $27,500 to conduct a national recruitment effort and screen perspective candidates.

Nienhueser said the city's search committee met with representatives from J.D. Gray last week.

"We reviewed 20 candidates that had submitted applications and shortlisted that group down to three to four," he said.

Six of the applicants didn't meet the position's criteria, the mayor said, leaving the search committee 14 candidates to consider. None of the applications were submitted by people who have previously worked for the city, he added.

Interviews with the shortlisted candidates are scheduled Jan. 25-26.

The city manager oversees the municipality's day-to-day administrative operations and its 14 departments with more than 100 full- and part-time staff.

While the search committee is consulting with J.D. Gray to determine a list of finalists, the entire city council will be involved in the interviews and the decision about to whom to ultimately offer the job.

Last fall, Nienhueser said he expected the council to make a job offer sometime in February.

Since Person's resignation, city clerk and treasurer Geri Anthony has been appointed interim city manager.

Once a permanent city manager is in the place, the city will move forward to fill another vacancy: the Sidney police chief.

That position has been vacant since B.J. Wilkinson resigned in October.

"Once the city manager is hired, we'll start the advertising process [for the police chief]," Jo Houser, the city's human resources director, said last month.

Assistant police chief Joe Aikens is currently the ranking officer in charge.

 

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