By SHANNON HAUGLAND
Sentinel Staff Writer
Assembly members will hold a special meeting at 5 p.m. today for videoconference interviews of the final four applicants for Sitka’s city administrator.
The agenda also has an item for “discussion/direction/decision regarding the municipal administrator application process.”
“My intention is to get to closure tonight, and see if we want anyone interviewed for an in-person interview,” said Mayor Gary Paxton. But he said it’s up to the Assembly majority to determine the next step.
Assembly member Kevin Knox said he would like to select finalists tonight, but give staff and Assembly members ample time for background checks and to develop a process before heading into finalists interviews.
Another member, Valorie Nelson, said she would also like to select finalists tonight, and “get on with it.”
Fire Chief Dave Miller is the interim administrator while the process to select a permanent administrator is under way.
Today’s interview schedule:
5 p.m. John Leach
5:45 p.m. John (Jack) Ardaugh
6:30 p.m. Alan Lanning
7:15 p.m. Sheldon Schmitt.
John Leach is the senior aeronautical engineering systems manager for U.S. Coast Guard headquarters in Washington, D.C. He was aeronautical engineering department manager at Air Station Sitka from 2015 to 2017, and engineering support branch manager in Elizabeth City, North Carolina. He has a master’s in industrial administration from Purdue University, and an undergraduate degree in operations research from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy.
John “Jack” Ardaugh has been an attorney with the Chicago law firm of Fahey and Associates the past eight years. He has a bachelor’s in business administration and marketing from Illinois State University, and a law degree from The John Marshall Law School in Chicago.
Alan Lanning has been city manager of Cordova, Alaska, since 2016. He also has been city administrator or manager for Lake City, Minnesota; Steamboat Springs, Colorado; Brookings, South Dakota; and Minturn, Minnesota. He has a master’s of public administration from the University of South Dakota, with a specialization in public management. His bachelor’s degree is in political science, with a minor in economics from South Dakota State University.
Sheldon Schmitt was a member of the Sitka Police Department from 2002 through 2017, serving as lieutenant and chief. He also worked for the North Slope Borough Police Department, and is currently communication and housing manager at SEARHC in Sitka. He has a master’s degree in justice administration from the University of Alaska Fairbanks. His undergraduate degree is from Minnesota State University, where he majored in criminal justice.
