August 31, 2020 |
On Thursday, Rawlins residents got their first opportunity to meet and ask questions of their new city manager. Citizens, municipal employees, along with city and county officials attended the Meet and Greet, which doubled as a farewell to Interim City Manager, Dustin Ziebold. Cali O’Hare attended the event and filed this report.
In the beginning of 1980, the City of Rawlins was governed by a mayor-council form of government. In March of that year, a petition to change from mayor-council to council-manager was filed pursuant to state statute. On May 22nd 1980, a special election was held with the majority of Rawlins residents casting a vote in favor of a change from mayor-council to council-manager form of government, which is what we have today.
Under this form of government, all power and authority rests with the city council, which employs the city manager. The City Manager actually runs the organization and oversees the day-to-day operation. In the case of Rawlins, the Mayor and Vice Mayor are appointed by other members of the council and have no more authority than any other member of the council.
In addition to the City Manager, the Rawlins City Council also employs the City Attorney and the Municipal Judge. The contracts for the city’s top three employees are up for renewal by the governing body each year in January.
Click here to watch a replay of the live stream of the Meet and Greet
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