MONROE — City officials will soon begin searching for a new administrator, following the resignation of David Lothspeich from the post he has held since 2020.

Lothspeich, who came to Monroe from the northern Chicago suburbs, and was commuting several days each week from more than an hour away, submitted his resignation on Jan. 30, and it is effective March 17, according to Monroe Mayor Donna Douglas.

“Me being a new mayor, it was a blessing to have him,” said Douglas. “He is definitely leaving on good terms.”

Lothspeich began working as administrator Nov. 2, 2020 but his transition to Monroe began Sept. 8 when the Common Council voted unanimously to hire him.

After working four years as a community development director, Lothspeich began as a village administrator in Bannockburn, Ill. There he remained for eight years before becoming the village manager in Long Grove, Ill., where he served for another 18 years.

After taking the Monroe job, he later moved into a Lake Geneva home, cutting his one-way commute time from two hours and twenty minutes to one hour and fifteen minutes.

He had been working in-office Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays, and from home on Thursdays and Fridays.

“It’s a long drive but I don’t mind it because everybody here has just been so welcoming and supportive and just great to work with,” he said early in his tenure. “They all want to help me to succeed and they’re all bringing me up to speed as quickly as they can.”

Attempts to contact Lothspeich for comment Monday before the city council meeting were unsuccessful.

Douglas said the city will likely appoint an interim administrator as they search for the right candidate to lead Monroe into the future. That process could take months, she said. 

The process to hire Lothspeich took more than a year. Phil Rath left in 2019, and a potential replacement from Minnesota reneged after initially accepting an offer in the spring of 2020.

“This came as a surprise but I hope someone can step up to the challenge and move us forward,” Douglas said. 

The city also is working to hire a fire chief.