City Administrator in Du Quoin's Future

</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[ Commissioner Rex Duncan Monday told members of his city council, "The way we manage the City of Du Quoin is becoming less effective. The division of labor is based on who gets the most votes and (as commissioners) it becomes more difficult to manage as parttime inexperienced supervisors. We are leaving professional decision-making to amateurs."

With that said, the council Monday asked city attorney Aaron Atkins to draft an ordinance establishing the position of city administrator, who would have the authority to negotiate contracts, make purchase decisions, sign off on completed projects and fully deal with the day-to-day personnel decisions within the city.

That assignment is expected to go to city clerk Blaine Bastien, a career mining supervisor who answered the call to become city clerk after then-clerk Rex Duncan accepted an administrative position at SIU.

Bastien would receive a modest increase in compensation, but Mayor John Rednour believes taking the day-to-day decision-making out of the hands of commissioners will save Du Quoin money and make government more efficient.

Rednour told the council and the viewing audience that there is a growling possibility--a likelihood--that he will not seek re-election in 2011. That decision would end his 22 year tenure as Mayor of Du Quoin, one of the three longest mayoral runs in Southern Illinois. Others are enjoyed by Mayor Bob Butler of Marion and Mayor Ned Mitchell of Sesser.

Commissioner Kathy West added to Duncan's comments, "Things are different." She pointed to the complexities of municipal management and agreed with Duncan in that commissioners often work outside the city and are less hands on. Commissioner Linda Fronek said she had reservations and asked about whether the position would go to someone in-house or whether the city needs to advertise for the position.

"Citizens has asked us (commissioners) to do our best to run the city. We need to take it to the next level."

Economic development director Jeff Ashauer said the commissioner form of government dates back to the 1890s and was first enacted by the City of Galveston, Texas and is no longer in use. "It is an administrative dinosaur," he said. He said Bastien is "well-positioned and well-suited for the job." Rednour called Bastien "tough" and "that's who I want for a job like this."

"We would have to give Blaine more money," said Rednour. He said the change would put a meaningful system in place when Bastien decides to retire, and of course a compensation increase would improve Bastien's own retirement.

Du Quoin would continue to elect a mayor and commissioners, but their role would shift to one of advice and consent rather than hands-on management of the city departments. It would not change the compensation for elected personnel nor presumably the position of public works director remains intact.

Mayor Rednour asked City Attorney Atkins to draft the ordinance for the Tuesday, May 26th meeting (day after Memorial Day holiday) of the council.