Interviews with potential candidates to fill the Northport Village Council manager position will begin as soon as March after trustees unanimously approved 6-0 to commence with the selection process and search contract at Thursday’s regular meeting.
The schedule approved will allow for a new manager to be in place by mid-March, giving the person selected at least a two week transition period. In December, Dyer was extended and accepted the Leelanau County administrator position, and is set to start in his new role on March 31, while his last day with the village is March 28. He has served as Northport village manager for over a year now, first starting fulltime in October 2023.
Within Dyer’s village employment contract, it states that he has to provide a 90-day notice of termination, so he will be available to assist the village during the transition period of hiring someone to fill in the manager role. The village will once again work with the Michigan Leadership Institute (MLI), through its consultant Chet Janik, who originally conducted the search to find Dyer in the summer of 2023, to assist in the process. The reduced fee contract for service to conduct the manager search is $5250 plus direct expenses not to exceed $700.
Since the matter was referred to the village personnel committee on Dec. 18, it authorized the village manager to initiate the contract. In the last few weeks though, Janik said he has received several inquiries concerning the position. The village manager salary is listed as $80,000 to $95,000 with a comprehensive benefits package for a multi-year contract. The application deadline to apply is Feb. 13. Applications are set to be screened the week of Feb. 17, with the first round of formal interviews to occur the week of March 3. The final round of inperson interviews starts the week of March 10, and the decision on the preferred candidate will be made shortly after that.
Dyer said when the council first hired him, they communicated that they wanted someone who could be a leader and who could assist them in running the village professionally. Dyer said part of the reason that he thinks the village is getting a lot of interest in the job posting is because of what the council is asking for through the role and all it has to offer.
“This is the kind of job in this position that someone wants to do. They want a council that functions like you do, that understands that they are a policy making board and basically stays out of the village manager’s way and allows them to run the village as appropriate,” Dyer said at the meeting. “That is, for a lot of people in my position, frankly a dream job, and I really attribute that less to my abilities and what I’ve done and more to what you’ve done to support me as your village manager…” The manager position will also include zoning administrator responsibilities, something that Northport Village Council President Chris McCann said is very important to have at the office on a daily basis.
For more information on the manager position and its requirements, go to villageofnorthport. net or contact MLI consultant Chet Janik at 231633-7680.
