Interim Mayor JW Foster
Photo credit: City of Yelm

* Interim Mayor Foster opens City Administrator replacement to public involvement
* One year after City Admin. Badger left, we finally get to meet viable candidates
* City Admin. Badger gave notice 15 months ago – no full-time, top job holder ever since
* City Administrator candidates to meet the public this evening, 6pm at the Comm. Center
* Interim City Admin. Brandon supposed to be here 3 months, he will leave after 6.5 months
* City of Yelm owes Interim City Administrator Brandon our gratitude


– Yelm City Administrator candidates:
* Melissa Evans, Las Vegas NV. senior economic development specialist
* Tom Kadla, Lumby, BC., Canada, chief administrative officer
* Adam Lincoln, Lakewood, WA. assistant city manager


– Meet the Yelm City Administrator candidates this evening:
“The community is invited to a meet and greet Tuesday at the community center starting at 6 p.m., and the interviews, which are open to the public, will be conducted Wednesday at both the Public Safety Building on McKenzie Avenue and at the Yelm Community Center starting at 9 a.m. and lasting until noon. One candidate will receive a tour of the city while the other two are being interviewed, then all three will rotate.”
Editor’s note: This blogger will be one of the interviewers.
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– The history of the city’s top position vacancy this Blog previously reported:
* 22 year City Administrator Badger gave notice to leave Yelm on June 5, 2015
“Yelm City Administrator Shelly Badger, 53, formally gave notice to resign from her position on Friday, June 5 [2015] and that her last day will be Tuesday, September 1 [2015]. Badger has worked for the City of Yelm for 30 years, being appointed in 1993 to City Administrator, a post she has held for 22 years. She presided over Yelm becoming one of the fastest growing cities in the county and state. As an example, when Badger was hired in 1985, Yelm’s population was approx. 1,300; the 2000 census recorded 3,289 residents; the 2010 census noted 6,848; 2013 estimate showed 7,639; and 2015 is forecast to be near 8,000, over six-fold increase.”
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* Interim City Administrator Bill Brandon hired March 15, 2016
Brandon was supposed to in this post for 3 months. Brandon has given notice he will return to retirement on September 30, 2016, 6.5 months after he took the Interim City Administrator assignment here. During his service, then-Mayor Harding resigned, which required Brandon to extend his stay in this temporary position from where he was hired via The Prothman Company, the same firm that has presented this list of City Administrator candidates.
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* 15 months after City Admin. job notice of availability, city gets candidates
While tipping the hat to Interim City Administrator Bill Brandon in acknowledgement of his stellar work to hold this city’s administrative tasks together during a mayoral transition, a Public Works Director (Dept. Head) transition, plus staff retirements and resignations, Mr. Harding’s legacy of pathetic leadership placed Mr. Brandon in this challenging position in the first place, and is duly noted. Mr. Brandon deserves this community’s thanks and sincere appreciation for his service AND leadership!
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– Bottom line:
* Kudos to Interim Mayor Foster for “fostering” transparency, open gov’t., community involvement
This Blogger wrote on August 1, 2016:
“Voters handily defeated 3 incumbent city servants by electing 3 new Councilors in Nov. 2015 who all ran on platforms of Open Government, Transparency & Community Involvement. The time has come for the ENTIRE council to listen to and “hear” their constituents, not just the new councilors, yet the entire council. The winds of change are what the residents want now, and not the same old, tired policies of decisions made behind closed doors guiding the future of this town.”

BRAVO, Mr. Foster, this is an outstanding first step to restoring confidence in the Mayor’s Office & City Hall!