As noted in this Oshkosh Northwestern summary, effective October 13th Richard Wollangk will retire as City Manager.
The Northwestern summary says that "an interim manager will be appointed as a national search gets underway for a new manager." An interim manager will indeed be appointed, but the Council has not yet decided to start a national search for a new manager.
If the Council were to start a national search for a new manager, I am quite sure that such a move would provoke a citizen movement to change the form of government.
As we learned in 1996, it makes little sense to begin a search for a city manager until citizens have made their voice heard on the form of government. As a result, at the next Council meeting (August 28) I am going to ask the Council to approve the placement of language on a special November referendum ballot that would ask citizens it they want to discontinue the City Manager form of government and move to the strong Mayor form outlined in chapter 62 of the Wisconsin State Statutes.
If the citizens reject a change in government, then the Council should move full steam ahead with a search for a new manager. But to begin that search without first having a change of government referendum--which would mean only that citizens themselves would prepare a referendum question for the April ballot--would make it very difficult to attract qualified city manager candidates and place us right back in the position we were 10 years ago.
Tomorrow (Tuesday) I will present a possible referendum language to the city attorney. When I get feedback on the appropriateness of the language, I will post it on this blog.
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5 comments:
Citizens should be given the opportunity to be heard on _2_ separate but related questions:
1. Do we want to abandon city manager for strong mayor government?
and, more importantly I think, in the long term:
2. Do we want to have our council elected, at least in part, by districts?
Oshkosh citizens need to be represented more directly.
Yes, definitely have a special referendum in November. And hear the people's voice on these two questions. The time is now.
Mr. Palmeri,
Two questions:
*If you are successful in altering the form of the current municipal government will you offer any assurances to the voters that you will not seek the position of Mayor?
In other words, creating a more powerful mayor position seems to be a consolidation of local power into one position -- something most voters got the distinct impression you were against on principle.
In other words, what assurances can you offer to the people of Oshkosh that this move to concentrate control in one office isn't some kind of power grab?
*Is 9 weeks long enough for the city to have a debate about fundamentally changing the way local government is run in Oshkosh?
JB,
This isn't about a "power grab." This is about not repeating past mistakes. In 1996 the City Council refused to place a referendum question on the ballot and began a search for a City Manager. Citizens then began a change of government referendum movement which resulted in manager candidates withdrawing. All I am saying is that the Council should move the referendum process along and if it fails, then we should do a rigorous search for a City Manager.
My Council term runs until 2009. If there were a mayoral election in April of 2008, I would not seek the position under any circumstances.
I think 9 weeks is more than enough time debate a referendum question, especially in this modern age of Internet Communication.
Thanks
Would not the earliest date of a Mayoral election for a fulltime mayor be in the spring of 2009.
Do not the votes have to vote in favor of the change in the city charter to change to a fulltime elected mayor.
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