The short-term structure of Monroe city government may have been made a little more clear last week, but the long-term picture remains uncomfortably cloudy.
The City of Monroe Salary and Personnel Committee on Dec. 10 made Mayor Ron Marsh the city's "go-to person" at City Hall while the administrator position remains vacant for at least another year. Marsh is to be the initial contact person for immediate problems beyond a department head's ability to address. When necessary, Marsh will forward problems and decisions to council committees.
Not surprisingly, there had been some questions and concerns about the chain of command at City Hall. The full-time administrator position was created in part to provide professional management of day-to-day operations of city government and human resources functions.
Given the circumstances, designating the mayor as the lead authority at City Hall makes the most sense today. While Monroe's mayor is a part-time and low-paid ($6,400 annually) position, Marsh doesn't fit the mold. His commitment of hours and devotion to the job is commendable, and far above and beyond what's expected.
And that's part of the problem.
It is a risky venture to structure the hierarchy of any business - and particularly these days, city government is a business - based on the skills and interests of specific individuals. Such ventures fall into chaos when those individuals leave, and are replaced by people with different skill sets.
It is unlikely Monroe's next mayor, whomever it is and whenever it is, will devote as many hours to the job. Given the job description, there shouldn't be that expectation.
That's why the Monroe City Council voted to have an administrator in the first place. While no two administrator candidates are alike, the presence of resume requirements dictates a more steady and predictable performance from the position.
Another part of the problem is that city government seems to get further away from its commitment to having an administrator with each decision it makes. While aldermen continue to insist they want to hire an administrator for 2010, it is unlikely that the budget situation will be any better next year. And it's hard to believe that, even given the tight budget, the council couldn't have found the money for an administrator if it really wanted to. The position was budgeted for $136,300 in 2008.
Finally, there was no official vote of the committee taken, and the discussion about having the mayor handle the day-to-day responsibilities of the administrator position was done in closed session, under the agenda item of "evaluation of the Mayor's performance." Evaluating performance and delineating responsibilities are two different things - the latter should be discussed in open session for the public to hear and, perhaps, participate.
The council still must have a public discussion about how it wants city government to operate in the long-term. Does it want a stronger mayor? Does it want an administrator? What does the public want?
The City of Monroe Salary and Personnel Committee on Dec. 10 made Mayor Ron Marsh the city's "go-to person" at City Hall while the administrator position remains vacant for at least another year. Marsh is to be the initial contact person for immediate problems beyond a department head's ability to address. When necessary, Marsh will forward problems and decisions to council committees.
Not surprisingly, there had been some questions and concerns about the chain of command at City Hall. The full-time administrator position was created in part to provide professional management of day-to-day operations of city government and human resources functions.
Given the circumstances, designating the mayor as the lead authority at City Hall makes the most sense today. While Monroe's mayor is a part-time and low-paid ($6,400 annually) position, Marsh doesn't fit the mold. His commitment of hours and devotion to the job is commendable, and far above and beyond what's expected.
And that's part of the problem.
It is a risky venture to structure the hierarchy of any business - and particularly these days, city government is a business - based on the skills and interests of specific individuals. Such ventures fall into chaos when those individuals leave, and are replaced by people with different skill sets.
It is unlikely Monroe's next mayor, whomever it is and whenever it is, will devote as many hours to the job. Given the job description, there shouldn't be that expectation.
That's why the Monroe City Council voted to have an administrator in the first place. While no two administrator candidates are alike, the presence of resume requirements dictates a more steady and predictable performance from the position.
Another part of the problem is that city government seems to get further away from its commitment to having an administrator with each decision it makes. While aldermen continue to insist they want to hire an administrator for 2010, it is unlikely that the budget situation will be any better next year. And it's hard to believe that, even given the tight budget, the council couldn't have found the money for an administrator if it really wanted to. The position was budgeted for $136,300 in 2008.
Finally, there was no official vote of the committee taken, and the discussion about having the mayor handle the day-to-day responsibilities of the administrator position was done in closed session, under the agenda item of "evaluation of the Mayor's performance." Evaluating performance and delineating responsibilities are two different things - the latter should be discussed in open session for the public to hear and, perhaps, participate.
The council still must have a public discussion about how it wants city government to operate in the long-term. Does it want a stronger mayor? Does it want an administrator? What does the public want?
