Troy begins new city manager search; city ​​and candidate couldn’t agree on contract

Troy is beginning a new search for a city manager after the city and the candidate selected last spring could not reach an agreement on the terms of his contract.

The City Council voted in April to appoint Bob Bruner, deputy city manager, as the new manager, following the May 31 retirement of Mark Miller, former city manager.

The city posted the position in early September with a salary range of $177,500-$240,000. The application deadline is Tuesday, Oct. 1.

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The council will meet Oct. 21 regarding the new manager search. If the council chooses to use this meeting to select candidates for interviews, it will be in a closed session, in compliance with the Michigan Open Meetings Act. Once a candidate list is finalized, public interviews will be held at a later date, according to a release from the city.

Police Chief Frank Nastasi was sworn in Thursday, Sept. 26, as city manager while the city conducts its search. Police Capt. Joshua Jones was sworn in the same day as acting police chief.

According to Michigan Civil Service regulations, an acting police chief cannot serve for more than three months.

Both Nastasi and Jones will serve in their temporary roles for no longer than three months while the council conducts its search, the city said in a release.

Bruner served as acting city manager after Miller’s retirement. He will return to his previous post of deputy city manager.

The council hired a search firm, MGT, in October 2023 to assist in the appointment of a city manager as Miller’s retirement approached.

The contract with MGT was for $23,500 and obligates the Illinois-based firm to continue its efforts if the city is unable to reach a contract with a candidate from its initial search. The new search will not cost the city additional funds, the release said.

Miller became city manager in 2018, following the council’s termination of his predecessor, Brian Kischnick, who was convicted of bribery. In an unrelated matter, Kischnick pleaded no contest in a domestic violence incident involving a subordinate.

Generally, a city manager runs the day-to-day government operations in a community that has a major part-time.