One Year Later, Fairbury Still Does Not Have a City Administrator

By Gordon HopkinsThe City of Fairbury remains without a city administrator since the last one was relieved of his duties a year ago this week. FJN recently spoke to Fairbury Mayor Spencer Brown, who indicated the lack of an administrator has not been a detriment to the city and, in fact, locating a new administrator is no longer a priority, “We have scaled back our efforts. Our current staff is doing an exceptional job without a city administrator.”Mayor Brown explained how the city is functioning without an administrator, “I have assumed some of the duties of the city administrator. Daily responsibilities have been shuffled around with current staff and we have also made some internal changes (adding a deputy city clerk) for the increased workload.”Crystal Floyd, a front office worker at the city office, took over the role of deputy city clerk, supporting city clerk Erin Reimer.There has been an ongoing worker shortage throughout the country, impacting both public and private sectors. The mayor told FJN that a, “Lack of qualified applicants moved us to find alternatives for our workload, which has worked very well.”Not everyone agrees the city can get by without an administrator. City councilperson Brad Kuzelka told FJN, “No, we need one. Erin (Reimer)didn’t sign up for this. We are likely missing out on opportunities that a dedicated administrator would have knowledge about.”According to the mayor, in the last year the city heard from just four qualified candidates, “Worth a follow up of some kind.”The mayor estimated another 10 candidates applied but were not considered, “Probably 10 or more…but understand, some were one single line of text or not even valid resumes.”Fairbury’s last city administrator, Jacob Matthews, was let go after just 57 days on the job and without explanation. The announcement came Friday, September 9, 2022, from Mayor Brown.On Monday, September 12, 2022, the mayor issued a statement, “Upon review and careful consideration, I found the city needed a change in the day to day leadership role to execute the tremendous amount of improvements the city is currently undertaking at a rapid pace. The position of a city administrator is very dynamic and requires detailed engagement across all departments to be successful. Current city staff is dedicated to keeping things moving in the right direction until a suitable candidate is found.”The mayor added, “I appreciate the support of city staff, the city council and most importantly, the citizens of Fairbury as we transition and keep Fairbury moving forward.”Matthews replaced the prior city administrator, Robert Messbarger, who announced his intention to resign after holding the job for less than one year. Messbarger, in turn, replaced Mary Renn, who left the position of Administrator but remains in the employ of the city as a Project Manager. Renn, in turn, replaced Collin Bielser, who resigned in 2019.

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