Evanston City Manager Named As Finalist For Job In Oregon

EVANSTON, IL — Officials in Oregon's third-biggest county announced last week Evanston's city manager has been selected as one of five finalists to become their county administrator. Wally Bobkiewicz and four other candidates with connections to the Pacific Northwest were picked for interviews to succeed retiring Clackamas County Administrator Don Krupp, who steps down at the end of the month.

Located in the Willamette Valley and part of the Portland metro area, Clackamas County has an estimated population of more than 412,000 and a total area of over 1,870 square miles, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, which estimated its population has grown by nearly 10 percent from 2010 to 2017.

The other candidates named as finalists in the county's nationwide search besides Bobkiewicz include Darryl "Troy" Bell, who resigned as chief administrative officer in Baton Rouge in 2017 after being fired from positions in Walla Walla, Washington, and Florida; Martha Bennett, the chief operating officer of Oregon's Metro regional government; Laurel Butman, deputy Clackamas County administrator and Gary Schmidt, Clackamas County director of public and government affairs, according to county spokesperson Tim Heider.

Bobkiewicz, 52, has been Evanston city manager since August 2009, when he replaced interim City Manager Rolanda Russell following the resignation of former City Manager Julia Carroll the prior year. He previously spent 20 years working in local governments in California, including seven years as city manager of Santa Paula, four years as assistant city manager in Novato and nine years working in various roles for Long Beach.

Bobkiewicz's wife, Patrice Frey, is a native of Kent, Washington, whose family lives in the area, while Bobkiewicz, who grew up in Glenview and Deerfield before moving to the Southern California town of Camarillo for high school, also has extended family living on the West Coast.

In May 2017, Bobkiewicz was selected as one of three finalists to become Tacoma's city manager. But following interviews, the Tacoma City Council elected to add to the candidate pool its acting city manager, who was eventually picked for the job. The same day Tacoma officials declined to select any of the three initial finalists, Bobkiewicz withdrew his name from consideration.

"I am not yet ready to leave Evanston. As attractive an opportunity as the Tacoma position is and as much as my wife and I were interested in being near her parents in the area, Evanston is still where our hearts and my professional passions live," Bobkiewicz said in a May 13 letter to Evanston aldermen. "This experience has reaffirmed my commitment to the City of Evanston. I do not plan to apply for any other City Manager positions in the near future."

Bobkiewicz will earn a compensation package of $255,766 this year, according to the city's 2019 budgeted employee compensation. Bobkiewicz was also granted a $200,000 interest-free loan for housing from the city. As of October 2016, he still owed $180,000 of that total after the City Council forgave $10,000 of the outstanding balance. He would be required to pay the money back on the closing date of the sale of his condo or will have one year to pay back the remainder of the loan at 4 percent interest should he change jobs, Pioneer Press reported at the time of his Tacoma interview. According to the terms of his contract, he must provide the city with 60 days notice of his resignation unless his departure is by mutual agreement.

Candidate interviews for the Clackamas County position will take place later this month, according to a Dec. 26 release from the county. Commissioners hope to hire a new administrator before the end of January with an anticipated starting date by March. A public reception to meet the finalists has been scheduled for Monday in Oregon City.