City Council Meeting Date: October 6, 2020
To: Mayor and City Council
From: Ben Martig, City Administrator
Title
Consideration Resolution Approving City Administrator Nomination of City Clerk.
Body
Action Requested:
The Northfield City Council consider the attached Resolution Approving the Appointment of Lynette Peterson as City Clerk.
Summary Report:
According to City Charter, Code, and Personnel Policy provisions, the City Administrator has the authority to appoint the City Clerk subject to the majority approval of the Council. Here are
those provisions:
City Charter, Section 7.3, subd. 3, states: “The administrator shall supervise all departments of the city. He or she shall have the sole authority to employ and dismiss personnel in city departments, including positions created by ordinance, except for the finance director, the city clerk and other department heads.”
City Code, Sec. 2-91, states: The city administrator may appoint and remove, subject to the approval of a majority of the members of the council, unless other authority to do so is stated in either the Charter or city ordinances, department heads and supervisory
personnel necessary to conduct the city's business.”
The City Personnel Policy Section “Hiring of Employees” states: “The City Administrator requires the approval of a majority of all members of the City Council to appoint the finance director, city clerk and department heads.” Department heads currently include the Director of Public Works/City Engineer, Police Chief, Director of Library, and Director of Community Development. The City Administrator appoints all other employees.
The City of Northfield has no additional policies or procedures outlining the process for filling the position of the City Clerk or any other Department Heads of the City. This is for good reason, as an opening should be explored on a case-by-case basis taking into consideration internal and external conditions as well as current needs of the position.
The City Clerk is an essential and critical position for the City that includes responsibilities of elections, records management, licensing, city-wide property and liability insurance management, data practices management and more. The position interacts with the public as it relates to several duties and responsibilities. Additionally, the City Clerk has substantial internal organizational duties across city departments and with the elected City officials.
Therefore, it is important to have strong communication and customer service skills in addition
to technical abilities to be a high performer in this position.
The City Clerk job posting was posted on the City website, Indeed, HCI, League of Minnesota
Cities, Minnesota Municipal Clerks organization, and the Northfield News from August 6 - 25. There were many quality applications received and the human resources department conducted the scoring off all applications. There were two rounds of interviews completed by a staff panelist group and determined the finalist after discussion and rankings. There was a City Council meet and greet with Ms. Peterson on Friday, September 25th that a number of members were able to attend to learn more about Ms. Peterson’s background, experience and interest in the position.
Ms. Peterson has a diverse work background with over twenty-one years of experience as a municipal clerk. Currently, she is City Clerk for the City of Excelsior MN, where her primary responsibilities include management of elections, business licenses, City Council meeting agenda preparation and minute taking. Previously, Ms. Peterson served as Administrative Support Specialist to the Nicollet County Administrator for over five years and many years of experience as Deputy City Clerk for the City of North Mankato.
Ms. Peterson is an active Municipal Clerks and Finance Officers Association member. She holds two certifications: Certified Municipal Clerk since December 2004 and Minnesota Certified Municipal Clerk since March 2005. Ms. Peterson graduated with an Executive Administrative Assistant degree from Rasmussen Business College.
Ms. Peterson is looking forward to the opportunity to put her municipal clerk skills to work at the City of Northfield. A community she has held in high regard. She expressed an eagerness to learn and grow as a member of the management team.
City Administrator Martig will introduce the nomination. Following Council questions, discussion and action on the agenda item, Mayor Pownell will pause before moving on to the next agenda item to allow Ms. Peterson to introduce herself to the community.
Alternative Options:
N/A
Financial Impacts:
N/A
Tentative Timelines:
Lynette Peterson is intending to start on full-time on November 9, subject to Council appointment.