By DEB GRUVER

Staff writer

Marion has hired a new city administrator — Brogan Jones, a Lyons building and code inspector — who will make a base annual salary of $60,000 with a $5,000 bump possible after six months on the job and awarding of his master’s degree.

City council members voted unanimously Monday to approve a contract that Jones signed ahead of the meeting. His signature was on a copy of the contract included in agenda packets.

Jones, who grew up in Sterling, will start May 1.

“I’m just excited to get going,” he said after the council meeting.

He expects his first week to be filled with meetings — staff, community leaders, business owners, and others.

“It’ll be a busy week,” he said.

Council member Zach Collett said he and his colleagues were impressed by Jones’s attitude.

“What he lacks in experience he makes up for in attitude and want-to,” Collett told the Record in an email. “We were able to tell right away that Brogan has a deep desire to learn and an ability to connect with people.

“He understands the importance of relying on our current staff members, as well as his vast network within the city administrator community, to help him succeed as city administrator.”

Jones will replace Mark Skiles, fired by the council late last year after a short stint.

Nine people applied to take Skiles’s place. The council narrowed the field to four finalists. Two dropped out — one just minutes before his interview.

Jones, who expects to graduate next month from Wichita State University with a master’s in public administration, has purchased a home in Marion.

After a six-month probationary period and proof of completion of his master’s degree, Jones will qualify for a $5,000 base salary increase.

The city will pay him a $2,000 moving allowance and provide him a vehicle for city business as well as a cell phone. He will get 20 days of sick leave and 80 hours of vacation time when he starts.

His own health and dental insurance will be free to him, and the city will pay 25% of his family’s health and dental insurance premiums.

Jones, whose wife is expecting a child in August, will be eligible to enroll in the state’s retirement program. City employees also receive a 20% utility discount.

The city will pay severance of 90 days for termination without cause. Skiles’s contract called for six months of pay and was not as detailed about what might be cause for termination.