Hutchinson City council hires former Reno County Administrator as interim city manager

The Hutchinson City Council on Tuesday approved hiring former Reno County Administrator Gary Meagher as an interim city manager.

However, a discussion and any action on the process for hiring a full-time replacement for former City Manager Jeff Cantrell, whose contract the city council ended on May 3, was delayed because two city council members were absent from Tuesday’s meeting.

Mayor Jade Piros de Carvalho said they'll try to hold a brief executive session during one of three upcoming special meetings on the budget to get the process started, but she wasn’t sure which meeting that will be.

Under the agreement approved on Tuesday, Meagher, 70, is contracted as interim manager for two months, after which the city can extend the agreement on a month-to-month basis.

Meagher will get the same salary Cantrell was receiving of $6,426 biweekly, which equates to an annual salary of just over $167,000 a year but without any benefits.

Meagher retired as the Reno County Administrator in December 2019, after 10 years at the helm of the county. Since then, he’s worked as an interim administrator for the city of Moundridge and as a consultant for Reno County in helping distribute initial rounds of COVID-19 relief money.

“I've had a chance to decompress,” Meagher told the council.

“I thank you for the privilege to be able to work for you,” Meagher said, noting he got into government management after 16 years in law enforcement.

He stayed in the profession, he said, because “I enjoyed making the community better, working with governing bodies, working with staff, working with community leaders making improvements to the community.”

More:South Hutchinson officials debate the direction to take on economic development spending

Cantrell was let go at the end of his contract after two years as Hutchinson City Manager. The council voted to non-renew just two weeks before the contract's expiration.

Cantrell didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment the day of the council vote, but he stated in a text a few days later that he was advised: “to suspend all interviews involving speculation as to the council’s decision.”

“I greatly appreciate the warm support I have received from citizens, staff, business owners, and local organizations,” he stated “I will remember Hutchinson fondly.”

On the search for a new manager, Piros de Carvalho said she wanted to make sure the full council was there to agree on a process. Councilman Greg Fast was at a National Main Street conference out of state and Councilwoman Sara Bagwell was absent for personal reasons.

They have discussed putting out a “request for proposals” or RFP for a search firm to assist with the hire, but the mayor said she’d prefer a more regional search than a national one “to get someone from Kansas or a surrounding state.”

“Maybe we can use the Kansas League (of Municipalities) to put something out there and see what we get back,” she said. “We did discuss an RFP, but it’s not finalized.”