6th city manager finalist approved

Published 1:44 pm Monday, March 21, 2011

A sixth Albert Lea city manager finalist will be coming to town this weekend to meet the community and interview with the Albert Lea City Council.

Officials with the city and Brimeyer Fursman — the firm organizing the search — announced Monday that David Johnson, current county administrator of Wabasha County, is now a finalist.

In Wabasha County, Johnson has 13 staff members reporting to him directly. There are 175 full-time and 10 part-time staff in the county. He oversees a budget of $20.4 million for the general fund and $7.75 million for highway and bridge replacement projects.

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He has worked in that county, population 22,265, since Feb. 2008.

Before that, he worked as city administrator in Valley City, N.D., population 7,200, from 2005 to 2008, where he supervised 68 people.

He has worked in two positions in the Metro Sewer District in Louisville, Ky., population 750,000, where he supervised up to 400 people.

In addition, he had worked in various positions in Indianapolis, Ind.

Johnson received his master’s in public administration from Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis in 1977, his master’s degree in American government and planning from Purdue University in 1976 and his bachelor’s degree in political science and history from the University of Wisconsin in 1974.

He joins finalists Chad Adams, Medina city administrator; Pat Merrill, former city manager in Fort Morgan, Colo.; David Minke, former deputy county administrator in Anoka County; Dean Torreson, city administrator in Macomb, Ill.; and Greg Withers, former Princeton city administrator.

The candidates will begin their visit with a tour of the city on Friday, then meet with city staff and participate in a public open house that afternoon.

On Saturday, each will be interviewed by the City Council.

The search is taking place after the city’s former manager resigned amid allegations of misusing the city-issued credit card.