(A) Appointment. The City Manager shall be appointed by the Council on the basis of his or her administrative and executive ability and qualifications and shall hold office for and at the pleasure of the Council. At the time of his or her appointment, the City Manager need not be a resident of the City but within a reasonable time after his or her appointment he or she shall become a resident of the City.
(B) Employment agreement. The City may enter into an employment agreement with the City Manager defining the terms and conditions of his or her employment. Said employment agreement may include the hours of work, salaries, length of term employment, method of termination, vacation and sick leave, insurance coverage, retirement benefits, fringe benefits, and such other matters as may be deemed appropriate by the Mayor and the Council and City Manager. In the absence of such an agreement defining the length or term of employment, the City Manager shall serve at the pleasure of the Mayor and Council and may be removed by a majority vote of the Council at any regular Council meeting at which such removal has been placed on the Council agenda as a specific agenda item for that meeting.
(C) Compensation. The City Manager shall receive such compensation as the Council shall fix from time to time.
(D) Powers and duties. The City Manager shall be the administrative head of the government of the City under the direction and control of the Council except as otherwise provided in this chapter. He or she shall be responsible to the Council for the proper administration of all affairs of the City. In addition to his or her general powers as administrative head and not as a limitation thereon, it shall be his or her duty and he or she shall have the powers set forth in the following sections:
(1) Execute, on behalf of the Council, general administrative supervision and control of the affairs of the City;
(2) Attend meetings of the Council with the duty of reporting on or discussing any matter concerning the affairs of the departments, boards, services, or activities under his or her supervision, upon which, in his or her judgement, the Council should be informed;
(3) Coordinate the administrative functions and operations of the various departments, boards, divisions, and services of the City government, and on its behalf to carry out the policies, rules, regulations, and ordinances adopted by it, relating to the administration of the affairs of such departments, boards, divisions, or services;
(4) Cause to be prepared and submitted to him or her by each department, board, division, or service of the City government, itemized annual estimates of expenditures required by them for capital outlay, salaries, wages, and miscellaneous operating costs; to tabulate the same into a preliminary consolidated municipal budget and submit the same to the Council annually on the date specified by them, with his or her recommendations as to any increases, decreases, cancellations, transfers, or changes in any of the items included in said preliminary budget;
(5) Supervise the expenditures of all departments, divisions, or services of the City government and to act as purchasing agent for the purchase of all supplies, goods, wares, merchandise, equipment, and material which may be required for any of such departments, divisions, or services;
(6) Analyze and supervise the functions, duties, and activities of the various departments, boards, and services of the City government and all employees thereof, and to make such recommendations to the Council with reference thereto, as in his or her judgement, will result, if made effective, in the highest degree of efficiency in the overall operation of the City government;
(7) Develop and organize necessary improvement projects and programs and to aid and assist the Council and the various departments and boards in carrying the same through to a successful conclusion;
(8) Serve as public relations officer of the City government, and to follow through and endeavor to adjust all complaints filed against any employee, department, or service thereof to the end that every effort may be made to satisfy all citizens that their City government is being operated in their behalf with the highest degree of efficiency;
(9) Cooperate with all community organizations whose aims and purposes it is to advance the spiritual and material interests of the City and its residences and to provide them with reasonable assistance obtainable through the City government within the limitations of the law;
(10) Make and keep up-to-date inventory of all personal property owned by the City and to recommend to the Council the purchase of new machinery, equipment, and supplies whenever, in his or her judgement, the same can be obtained at the best advantage, taking into consideration trade- in value of machinery or equipment in use;
(11) Make, or cause to be made, studies and surveys of the duties, responsibilities, and work of the personnel in the various departments and services of the City government and to recommend to the City Council abolition or consolidation of positions or transfers or removals of personnel in such studies and surveys, whenever, in his or her judgment, such action would increase efficiency in the administration of the City government;
(12) See that all laws and ordinances of the City are duly enforced;
(13) Devote his or her entire time to the discharge of his or her official duties;
(14) Perform such other duties as may be required of him or her by Council, not inconsistent with the laws of the state or ordinances of the City;
(15) Appoint and, when necessary, suspend and remove all employees of the City except appointed officials pursuant to the City’s personnel rules and regulations, this code, and ordinances of the City. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the City Manager shall obtain City Council approval before implementing layoffs; and
(16) Advise and consult with the City Council with respect to the appointment of all appointive officers of the City, and recommend the removal or suspension of any such officers when such removal or suspension shall be consistent with the best interest of the City.
(E) Council not to interfere with appointments or removals. All officers and employees, except the City Attorney and the City Magistrate, shall be appointed by the Manager, and neither the Council nor any of its members shall direct or request the appointment of any person to, or his or her removal or suspension from, such office by the Manager or his or her subordinates, or in any manner take part in the appointment or removal of such officers and employees in the administration services of the City. Except for the purpose of inquiry, the Council and its members shall deal with the administrative service solely through the Manager. The City Attorney and the City Magistrate shall be appointed or removed at the direction of the Council.
(F) Public relations. In the discharge of his or her duties as Manager, the person holding such position shall endeavor at all times to exercise the highest degree of tact, patience, and courtesy in his or her contacts with the public and with all City boards, departments, and employees and shall use the best of his or her efforts to establish and maintain a harmonious relationship between all personnel employed in the government of the City to the end that the highest possible standards of public service shall be continuously maintained.
(Prior Code, § 3-2-1) (Ord. 09-06, passed 1-26-2009)