After Boden, what’s next?

By Jason Nevel
Herald Staff Writer

June 25, 2009 10:53 am

— CLINTON — After the approved departure by the Clinton City Council of city administrator Gary Boden Tuesday, Clinton will soon be searching for a new problem solver.
Finding feasible answers to quagmires facing the city is one of the main duties of the city administrator, which is why the job usually attracts candidates with extensive resumes.
Boden arrived in Clinton with previous experience as a city manager in Whitewater Wis., and as a vice president/client representative for a financial firm in Milwaukee.
Admittedly, Clinton City Attorney Paul Walter, who will be Boden’s interim replacement, does not have that background.
“I'm a city attorney and that's my experience,” Walter said.
Some of the problems that confronted Boden when he came to Clinton still exist. For example, it’s still unclear how the Archer Daniels Midland cogeneration plant will be taxed.
But road projects, like extending 19th Avenue North and Liberty Square, have made progress under Boden. Clinton recently received federal dollars for the 19th Avenue North project.
“Put on your desk is pretty much anything and everything that could be going wrong with the city so you have to figure out how to resolve those problems,” said Matt Brisch, former Clinton City Administrator and city attorney. He carried out those duties after the resignation of former City Administrator Jeff Kooistra in 2006.
The predicaments that need solved the most are how will the city pay for projects and what can it afford. The city administrator usually is the person responsible for coming up with that plan. A technique often used is borrowing money up front and then paying it off over an extended period of time plus interest.
That is the way Clinton, like other cities, pays for its road repairs. In addition, the city administrator also works with businesses, the police and fire departments and city employees.
“It's hard for anybody to just walk in without having a set of skills,” said Kooistra. “It takes somebody with the training and experience.”