The guest opinion in Tuesday's Monroe Times by Alderman Paul Hannes (Ward 2) further emphasizes the need for the Monroe City Council to clarify the leadership hierarchy at City Hall.
The main point of Hannes' opinion piece is that former City Administrator Mark Vahlsing was dismissed largely as a result of a power struggle between he and Mayor Ron Marsh.
"Personally, I think there was getting to be a power struggle between the mayor's office and Mark," Hannes wrote.
Hannes, who was a mayoral candidate in 2006 when Marsh won his first term as a write-in, also offered his opinion on the line of authority.
"The structure of an administrative government is set up so that the administrator answers to the council; the mayor is basically a figurehead and holds no power."
Anyone following city politics the past two-plus years knows Marsh certainly is more than a figurehead in Monroe government. While he doesn't have voting power - though he tried mightily last year to gain it - he has a heavy influence on city policy direction and his opinion carries a lot of weight with at least some aldermen.
Marsh's role as mayor has been much different than some on the council envisioned when they approved creating the city administrator position in 2005. In Marsh's defense, he told citizens he would be more than a figurehead when he first ran for the office.
Whether there was a "power struggle" at City Hall or not is debatable. Clearly, there remains confusion more than two years into the administrator experiment over just who's in charge of what in city government.
As the council works with Public Administration Associates in its search for a new city administrator, aldermen must first establish just what it expects from that position, and from the mayor. Individual personalities, or the wishes of the current mayor, should not have any bearing on what those expectations are. Aldermen must determine what structure and chain of authority is best for the city - not for Ron Marsh or for themselves.
Should the part-time, elected mayor be only a figurehead? If not, what authority does the mayor have and what authority does the administrator have? These questions must be answered, in specific detail and after significant public discussion, in the job description for the next city administrator.
The current search gives the council the opportunity to do that work. It must be diligent in completing it.
The main point of Hannes' opinion piece is that former City Administrator Mark Vahlsing was dismissed largely as a result of a power struggle between he and Mayor Ron Marsh.
"Personally, I think there was getting to be a power struggle between the mayor's office and Mark," Hannes wrote.
Hannes, who was a mayoral candidate in 2006 when Marsh won his first term as a write-in, also offered his opinion on the line of authority.
"The structure of an administrative government is set up so that the administrator answers to the council; the mayor is basically a figurehead and holds no power."
Anyone following city politics the past two-plus years knows Marsh certainly is more than a figurehead in Monroe government. While he doesn't have voting power - though he tried mightily last year to gain it - he has a heavy influence on city policy direction and his opinion carries a lot of weight with at least some aldermen.
Marsh's role as mayor has been much different than some on the council envisioned when they approved creating the city administrator position in 2005. In Marsh's defense, he told citizens he would be more than a figurehead when he first ran for the office.
Whether there was a "power struggle" at City Hall or not is debatable. Clearly, there remains confusion more than two years into the administrator experiment over just who's in charge of what in city government.
As the council works with Public Administration Associates in its search for a new city administrator, aldermen must first establish just what it expects from that position, and from the mayor. Individual personalities, or the wishes of the current mayor, should not have any bearing on what those expectations are. Aldermen must determine what structure and chain of authority is best for the city - not for Ron Marsh or for themselves.
Should the part-time, elected mayor be only a figurehead? If not, what authority does the mayor have and what authority does the administrator have? These questions must be answered, in specific detail and after significant public discussion, in the job description for the next city administrator.
The current search gives the council the opportunity to do that work. It must be diligent in completing it.
