Alderman Wants Public Discussion Of Future Of City Manager Job

EVANSTON, IL — An Evanston alderman called for the mayor and the rest of the City Council to engage in a public discussion about the future of the city manager position. In an email Thursday to his 6th Ward constituents, Ald. Tom Suffredin said the city should not wait for City Manager Wally Bobkiewicz to accept a position elsewhere before engaging the public for input on his successor.

"We as a city need to address whether a leader who openly, publicly and unapologetically wants to leave Evanston should continue to run Evanston's day-to-day affairs," Suffredin said. "If a majority of the city's elected representatives are satisfied with the current situation let them say it publicly and not shielded from the view of their constituents in executive session."

In response, several his colleges expressed confidence in the city's longtime chief executive and concern about the propriety of handling personnel matters in the open. Mayor Steve Hagerty said Suffredin is trying to force Bobkiewicz to quit, while 8th Ward Ald. Ann Rainey worried talented staff might follow him out the door given a "dreadful environment that is currently percolating."

Last month, Bobkiewicz was named as a finalist for a position as a county administrator in Oregon. In May 2017, he made a shortlist of candidates to become a city manager in Washington. The North Shore native's spouse has family in the Pacific Northwest and has expressed a desire to move west should the right professional opportunity arise.

"The city of Evanston should not wait with bated breath for a decision by five commissioners in Clackamas County, Oregon or allow our city’s course to be determined by the vagaries of the Pacific Northwest employment market," Suffredin said. Bobkiewicz should be praised for his honesty about his desire to seek work elsewhere, but residents "deserve to know what is going on," Suffredin said, calling for "an open and transparent public discussion on this matter."

Bobkiewicz was hired in August 2009 after spending about two decades working in municipal government in California, including the last seven as city manager in Santa Paula. His annual compensation is $255,766, not including a $200,000 interest-free loan he was provided to purchase a condo.

According to the terms of his contract, he would have a year to pay back the remainder of the loan should he change jobs and must provide the city with 60 days notice of his resignation unless he leaves by mutual agreement.

Bobkiewicz confirmed he has informed aldermen that he would consider accepting a job in Washington or Oregon if it made professional sense.

Last month, he told a ward meeting, "In the meantime, I'm proud to be Evanston's city manager," the Evanston RoundTable reported.

Ald. Cicely Fleming said Bobkiewicz has been open about his desire to move to be closer to his in-laws and said the City Council should put a succession plan in place.

"We need to be a little bit more proactive. We know he's leaving at some point," Fleming said. "Whatever it is we know it's coming, so that is something that we should be talking about and that does concern me that we're not talking about it."

Fleming suggested seeking public participation in a similar fashion to the way the city found a new police chief after Chief Richard Eddington announced his plans to retire.

Hagerty agreed that the public should be involved in the nationwide search for Bobkiewicz's permanent successor, but such a discussion should wait for the departure of the current city manager to be finalized. The mayor said he had received many responses to Suffredin's newsletter from members of the community who value Bobkiewicz's "leadership, professionalism, and delivery of city services." He said he did not feel it was appropriate to have a public discussion about any city employee.

"Unlike Alderman Suffredin, I do not support firing him or trying to force him to quit," Hagerty said Friday. "We are fortunate to have a high-performing city manager such as Wally Bobkiewicz at the helm of our fine city."

Ald. Eleanor Revelle, 7th Ward, said she had full confidence in Bobkiewicz, and Ald. Don Wilson, 4th Ward, said it was inappropriate to "lobby the community on personnel matters," the Evanston Review reported.

"I'm not trying to re-do his performance evaluation in public. I'm talking about: what is the plan for the role of city manager because we have an anticipated vacancy and we have not talked at all about what we're going to do," Suffredin said. "We're just waiting on other places to make a decision and then we'll start from there. I just don't think that's a professional, proactive, appropriate approach for a city our size."

Rainey, who interviewed Bobkiewicz for the job nearly a decade ago, said it is easy to transition from a city manager to an interim to a new hire. All cities do it and Evanston has done it many times, she said.

"What gives a city a terrible reputation in terms of getting the highest quality leadership is the ugliness that is swirling about this city at this time perpetrated by a few for reasons unknown," Rainey said, "or perhaps due to inexperience?"

Suffredin and Fleming took office in 2017, while the 8th Ward representative has served on the council for more than 35 years.

"Who would want to come to this town and work under conditions that could result in this kind of treatment?" Rainey asked. "Trust me this is not normal in a community of this quality."

Other members of the council did not respond to requests for comment Friday. Their responses will be added if they are received.

The city manager is the municipality's chief executive and the only person hired directly by the City Council under Evanston's council-manager form of government. The position is responsible for hiring and managing the rest of the city's staff, presenting its budget, providing advice and receiving direction from aldermen. According to city attorney Michelle Masoncup, a majority of the council is required to hire or dismiss a city manager.

The City Council last held a performance review in October 2018. At the time, a majority of aldermen expressed support for keeping Bobkiewicz, who declined to say Friday whether he was seeking another position at the time. Such personnel matters are handled in closed-door executive session and the results of such reviews are prohibited from disclosure under state public records law.

No vote was taken on Bobkiewicz's employment during the meeting. Afterwards, Hagerty announced that he and the council gave Bobkiewicz "a positive performance review" with scores that "met or exceeded expectations in each of nine categories he was evaluated."

Fleming said aldermen should be transparent about their assessment of the city manager following the annual closed-door review process, noting the council is only tasked with managing a single staff member — the city's highest-paid employee.

"It is our responsibility," Fleming said, "to be open about what we think about his performance and if we support him staying or going and why we choose either one of those."

Last week, in an email with a constituent, Suffredin said he believes Hagerty and other aldermen are putting their "personal affinity" for Bobkiewicz above their duty to residents. He speculated that "a weak and inexperienced mayor finds comfort in Mr. Bobkiewicz’s service and is less interested in the future of Evanston than treating his only term as mayor as a branding exercise."

Friday, some citizens began circulating a petition calling for Bobkiewicz's removal and a public re-evaluation of his performance.

Statement from Ald. Tom Suffredin's entitled "We Deserve Better" from a 6th Ward newsletter sent Feb. 7:

It is time for us to have a public discussion about the future of the City Manager position.

Evanston’s current City Manager has competently served Evanston since 2009. In return the taxpayers of Evanston have been very good to the current City Manager. Now is the time for the current City Manager to be good to Evanston and place the City above his own personal and professional interest.

Over the past two years, the current City Manager has openly sought employment elsewhere. To date, he has not been chosen by other governments, though making the short list at least twice, once in Tacoma, WA and once in Clackamas County, OR.
The current City Manager has been very forthright about his desire to leave Evanston for another position, preferably out West, and is to be thanked for his frankness. But this stagnant, purgatorial existence is not good for Evanston.

While the City Manager's desire to 'move west to be closer to family for the right circumstances' is admirable and understandable, a city of 75,000 people should not be in an interminable holding pattern waiting for one person’s right circumstances to emerge. The residents of Evanston deserve to know what is going on, and I believe the best way forward is through and open and transparent public discussion on this matter.
This is not about one person's employment, but about choosing the best way forward for the residents of the City we were all elected to serve. The City of Evanston should not wait with bated breath for a decision by five Commissioners in Clackamas County, Oregon or allow our City’s course to be determined by the vagaries of the Pacific Northwest employment market. There is no succession plan, no timetable, and there has been no public discussion. We have a responsibility to put Evanston’s future above all else.

It is time for the elected City Council of Evanston, including Mayor Stephen H. Hagerty, to have a properly noticed, open, and public discussion about the future of the City Manager position. These discussions have tangentially taken place in closed executive session during the performance evaluation of the current City Manager, but now is the time for an intentional and public discussion, including citizen input and comment.
A public discussion of the best way forward for all residents and employees of the City Evanston is necessary and appropriate. We as a City need to address whether a leader who openly, publicly, and unapologetically wants to leave Evanston should continue to run Evanston's day-to-day affairs.

If a majority of the City's elected representatives are satisfied with the current situation let them say it publicly and not shielded from the view of their constituents in Executive Session. The public has a right to know and has a right to be heard on this important topic. This is larger than one person's employment or any personal matter. This is about finding the best way to move forward for the residents of the City we were all elected to serve.

Mayor Steve Hagerty provided the following statement in response:

I do not think it is appropriate for the City Council to have a public discussion about a City employee, including our City Manager. The City Manager reports to and works for the Mayor and the Aldermen. He is evaluated on an annual basis by the elected body... Mr. Bobkiewicz has served this City well for over 9 years and continues to have my support. If he applies for and is hired for another position, the Council will decide if our Assistant City Manager or another capable professional in our City will serve as the Interim City Manager while we conduct a nationwide search. Since Alderman Suffredin's message - Evanston Deserves Better - went out I have had many in this community tell me how much they value Mr. Bobkiewicz leadership, professionalism, and delivery of City services. Unlike Alderman Suffredin, I do not support firing him or trying to force him to quit. We are fortunate to have a high performing City Manager such as Wally Bobkiewicz at the helm of our fine City.

The City Council's longest-serving member, 8th Ward Ald. Ann Rainey, provided the following statement:

I support the city manager. He is one of the longest serving managers in State of Illinois. It would be of concern if a person of his stature would not be seeking a new opportunity at this point. He has yet to reach the pinnacle of his career. He has made it very clear and it is very obvious that he is giving us 110% of service to this city while he is employed here.

The transition (succession plan?) from a current city manager to an interim city manager to a new hire city manager is a very smooth transition - the city has done it many, many times. All cities do it. What gives a city a terrible reputation in terms of getting the highest quality leadership Is the ugliness that is swirling about this City at this time perpetrated by a few for reasons unknown or perhaps due to inexperience?

Who would want to come to this town and work under conditions that could result in this kind of treatment? Trust me this is not normal in a community of this quality.

When we hired Wally from Santa Paula, California we asked the employees of the community why they were so happy in their jobs. We were told that Wally had been preparing them for his leaving. He was a wonderful mentor. I believe he’s done that with our staff. Our municipal government has never been more well-trained, more sophisticated, more diverse or smarter - thanks to Wally.

The problem I fear is that given the dreadful environment that is currently percolating our very competent staff will want to follow him out of this town. Shame on us if we let that happen.

Earlier: Evanston City Manager Named As Finalist For Job In Oregon