Camas announces city administrator finalists

This morning the City of Camas released the names of the top five applicants in its search for a new city administrator.

The finalists include Erik Jensen of Portland, the former administration department director for the City of Hillsboro, Ore.; Craig Martin of Sweet Home, Ore., current Sweet Home city manager; Steven Marshall, of Camas, current principal of Camas High School; Paul Schmidt, of Cheney, Wash., former city administrator for the City of Oak Harbor, Wash.; and Martin Snell, of Camas, current Clark County Community Development director and former City of Camas planning manager.

The initial call for applications drew a total of 54 submissions, which was narrowed to 16 individuals earlier this month. Those 16 submitted answers to a set of supplemental questionnaires, which then led to the selection of the finalists.

The formal interview process will include a social dinner for the finalists, City Council members and select city staff on Monday, July 9 and a meet-and-greet event open to the public on Tuesday, July 10 from 4 to 6 p.m., at Camas Fire Station 42, 4321 N.W. Parker St.

On Wednesday, July 11, during panel interviews, the candidates will face questions from a group that will include: former Camas mayors Dean Dossett, Paul Dennis and Nan Henriksen; Camas Human Resources Director Jennifer Gorsuch; current Camas City Administrator Lloyd Halverson; Vancouver City Manager Eric Holmes; Washougal Mayor Sean Guard; Vancouver Human Resources Director Elisabeth Gotelli; Camas City Councilwoman Melissa Smith; Camas School District Deputy Superintendant Jeff Snell; WaferTech Director of Facilities Jim Short; and Clark County Administrator Bill Barron.

Camas Mayor Scott Higgins will then interview the top two to three candidates on Thursday, July 12, followed by the announcement of his pick for the job by the end of July.

Yesterday, Higgins said he is pleased with the top five candidates, who have varying backgrounds and experience levels.

“It’s been an interesting process,” he said. “I think we’ve got some solid applicants. Some of them are traditional, some of them are non-traditional. Now we’ll run them through the interview process and hopefully the panel will forward me two really good candidates.”

Halverson announced in January during the City Council’s annual planning conference his plans to retire from full-time work in September after 23 years on the job. Depending on when the new city administrator starts, Halverson could continue to work for the city in a part-time capacity for a period of time. He has so far been the city’s only administrator.

In preparation for the onset of the search for a new city administrator, in April the City Council approved a resolution to boost the position’s salary by 4 percent. The new monthly salary range starts at $9,464 and tops out at $11,300.

The previous scale was $9,088 to $10,852.