CRESWELL, Ore. (KMTR) - The City of Creswell has appointed a new temporary city administrator and is now looking for two new city councilors following a series of surprise resignations.
Creswell City Council called a rare Saturday meeting on March 16 after the resignation of the nearly ten-year City Administrator Mark Shrives and City Councilors Mike Anderson and Jean McKittrick.
The five remaining council members voted unanimously Saturday today to appoint Jamon Kent as the interim Creswell city administrator. Kent held the position previously in 2008 after Shrives temporarily left the office for another position.
Kent says once again, he won't apply for the permanent position, saying he works mostly with the Lane Council of Governments and focuses on rehabilitating local government in the midst of vacancy issues.
“A lot of it has to do with communication, a lot of it has to do with openness, being comfortable with openness. A lot of it has to do with some perceived or real, 'who's in charge and who makes the decision?' So you just kind of sort those all out, get them aligned and start going down the path,” said Kent in an interview with NewsSource 16 on Saturday.
NewsSource 16 asked Mayor Dave Stram about the projects the city needs to tackle with a new council. Stram said right now he’s more focused on filling the gaps first and making sure everyone is getting along.
“I'm less concerned about what the goals are and more concerned about the process so that we set goals that are mutually agreed upon and that can be tackled by a group of people working together,” said Stram.
Creswell hopes to hire a new city administrator by June. As for the city council seats, an application process for the positions will begin on Tuesday, March 19. The process will run until April 9.
Finalists will interview on April 11 and be chosen after that.
As for why Creswell's former City Administrator Mark Shrives and Councillors Mike Anderson and Jean McKittrick resigned, some say it was dispute over a proposed airport weather system. Others say it was just a result of strained relationships over the last few years.
