Babbitt’s city council promoted administrative assistant Kirsten Traut to the open clerk-treasurer position at a special meeting on Tuesday.
Traut applied for the position’s internal posting. The city had not yet opened the pool to external applications.
“She’s very good at her job, and I think she’s really good with the community. She’s a well-rounded, well-fit person to take that position. She has longevity and I’m quite confident she’ll be able to fulfill the job,” said council member Joe White.
A motion from White to hire Traut to the clerk-treasurer position, seconded by Jim Lassi, initially fell through with negative votes from Duane Lossing and John Fitzpatrick.
Lossing served as acting mayor in the absence of mayor Andrea Zupancich, who departed from the building prior to the discussion and roll call vote in order to avoid a conflict of interest due to her familial ties to Traut, her daughter.
“I don’t think we should rush into anything right now,” Lossing said.
“I don’t disagree that Kirsten, who does a ton of work, is very knowledgeable, works very hard and has the potential to someday be the clerk-treasurer of the city,” Lossing said. “I think the timing is off right now for us. I think we need to proceed in a different manner and I don’t think this is something we need to decide today.”
Lossing advocated for the council to post the job externally to “see what we can find,” and Traut could be considered in the applicant pool.
Lossing suggested the council explore the option of hiring an interim clerk while undergoing the elongated applicant review and hiring process.
“I’d like to see an interim come in and make sure the books are up to date," Fitzpatrick said.
Deputy clerk-treasurer Sara Powell said Zupancich had already sourced four responses from potential interim clerk-treasurer candidates at the League of Minnesota Cities but had not yet received quotes from any of the four.
“They’re going to come up here, it’s going to take time for us to train an interim for what we need when we can do the books, me and Kirsten, we can do this already without an interim," Powell said.
Powell said an interim clerk-treasurer could amount to “more of a hindrance" for the city adminis trators responsible for providing assistance to the interim hire.
“My opinion about getting an interim from the League of Minnesota Cities is that it’s a waste of money and time and effort, especially in a city that is so busy," Powell said.
Following the first failed motion to hire Traut, council members discussed how and when to post the opening externally.
Lossing made a motion to “post the job ASAP" on a variety of plat forms, seconded by Fitzpatrick. The motion fell through with negative votes from White and Lassi.
Fitzpatrick shifted and revived the original motion to hire Traut to the clerk-treasurer role. The motion passed with approval from White and Lassi, while Lossing maintained his dissenting vote.
“If we go interim or if we go the other way, it’s going to be another two to three months before we hire somebody," Lassi said. "I think Kirsten can do the job given the experience she has now and her willingness to grow and learn the job, so I think this is a good choice."
Moving forward, Powell said she and Traut “are prepared to present the council with an accurate summary of funds on a regular basis again," with Traut working with former long-time clerk-treasurer Kathy Hoheisel’s spreadsheet.
The city may look into clerk training provided through the League of Minnesota Cities for Traut. The council could also consider training via online educational modules for the Banyon accounting software, which would total around $300, Traut said.
“The more training we can get right away, we really need to get in a place where we’re successful and we can keep moving forward with everything, because this is exhausting," Powell said.
Powell will take charge of election administration this cycle, which would normally involve the clerk-treasurer. Traut cannot participate in ballot work with Zupancich up for election, due to the pair’s family ties.
Powell will maintain her $5 hourly lead pay until November 3, when Traut may jump in to help with post-election expense reports and other work.
The council approved a motion to post Traut’s former position as city administrative assistant both internally and externally until July 31.
The council could hold a special meeting after that date to review applications or conduct the review at the regular meeting on August 4.
