Matt Podhradsky, assistant city administrator, was awarded Chaska’s top appointed position at a special meeting Monday night.

The Chaska City Council will formally vote on Podhradsky’s appointment as the new city administrator during its Dec. 1 meeting.

Four councilors indicated their preference of Podhradsky, over contender Samantha Orduno, city administrator of Dayton. Jay Rohe voiced the dissenting opinion. The two councilors-elect, who participated in the final Monday night interviews, also gave their vote of confidence to Podhradsky.

Podhradsky has served in his current post since 2001, previously serving as Winsted’s city administrator. He is currently serving as interim city administrator, following the resignation of David Pokorney. Pokorney served in the position for 24 years, and was hired by the city to head up the search for his replacement.

Stay the course

The decision was made after follow-up interviews with Podhradsky and Orduno on Monday evening.

After the interviews, each lasting about 80 minutes, the council discussed the two candidates. “I felt Saturday I preferred Matt,” said Councilor Bob Lindall. “I still feel that way.” He noted Podhradsky’s experience with the city’s practice of setting goals.

“I definitely have confidence in Matt,” said Councilor Gino Businaro.

“I really do believe Matt will do a good job for us,” said Mayor Gary Van Eyll.

Rohe, citing need for change and a more experienced administrator, threw his support behind Orduno, describing her as a “gregarious individual.” He worried that Pokorney’s 24 years of tenure, followed by a possible 24 years with Podhradsky, would result in a lack of new ideas.

Councilor Chris Schulz said he had shared similar thoughts, but that on Monday, Podhradsky had “closed the door” on his concerns. “Matt is not Dave, Jr.,” Schulz said.

Later, Rohe criticized the councilors, calling for independent voices.

“It’s a shame you are that blind,” rebuked Schulz.

Podhradsky

The first question the councilors asked candidates was how they would handle the sour economy.

Podhradsky replied that the city needed to attract industries to expand its tax base. He also said the city may need to consider increasing the tax rate, to maintain steady revenue as home values decrease. Cutting city services would be difficult, considering “we’ve been pretty thin in providing those services,” he said.

He noted that he helped land the city millions of dollars in grants. When dealing with staff, he said that supervisors need to “set clear expectations” and “give them a reason to follow you.” He described himself as a workaholic. “I don’t like doing things half-baked,” he said.

Podhradsky lives in Chaska’s Clover Ridge neighborhood with his wife and family. “I consider Chaska may home,” he said. “I’d love to make my career here. It’s a place I could see doing that.”

Rohe asked Podhradsky about criticism that he is “another extension of Dave Pokorney” and that Pokorney is “anointing” him as a successor. Rohe also asked how Podhradsky would say “no” to former city officials like Pokorney and former Mayor Bob Roepke, who are now in the private sector and working on local development projects.

“I don’t care who it is. If it’s a project that’s not meeting our [objectives] why would you do it?” Podhradsky replied. “From a personal standpoint, equity is a big thing for me,” he said, of working with developers. Podhradsky said he had a different personality and decision-making style than Pokorney, describing himself as reflective and introspective.

“I understand Chaska and the community,” he said, adding that he also understood the “culture of the organization.”

Orduno

Before her Dayton job, Orduno had served as city administrator or city manager for the cities of Richfield, Mounds View and Carpinteria, Calif.

Orduno said she had been through previous economic downturns with other jobs, and that she would survey the public to gauge their financial priorities.

On other questions, Orduno noted that she “always had an open door” to discuss issues. She said she went out of her way to interact with public, including visits to people who raised issues in letters to the editor.

“I don’t micromanage,” she said of her leadership style. “It takes a lot for me to lose my temper,” she said. She noted that she had experience in both “developing and redeveloping” communities.

Orduno discussed hot-button issues she worked on in Richfield – including the city’s involvement in the location of Best Buy’s corporate headquarters, and finding funds to pay for a key overpass to serve the new development.

 “If you’re looking for someone who can lead, and lead you to the future, I can do that for you,” she said.

Regarding downtown revitalization, Orduno said, “It has to be a destination. You have to bring people downtown,” she said, recommending “big events” that would draw attention to the area.

“Tell me what you want it to look like, I’ll get it for you,” she said.

Top five

The two finalists were winnowed from a list of five candidates.

The other three candidates were Daniel Donahue, James Norman and Edward Shukle, Jr.

All five candidates were interviewed at City Hall on Saturday in a round-robin format. Small groups of elected officials, councilors-elect, and city department leaders conducted 45-minute interviews with each applicant.

After the Saturday interviews, Rohe said he was seeking a candidate who was going to “endear themselves here and take ownership and develop that heart of Chaska.

“We don’t want anyone to come here, do the job and leave,” he added.

It was important to discover the candidates’ management styles, as well as “what did they know about our community and why did they want to come to Chaska,” said Chaska Police Chief Scott Knight, who participated in the interviews.

Van Eyll said he kept an eye out for candidates with a “passion for what they were applying for.”

The interviews were followed by a public forum, with sparse public attendance. The group then held a meeting to discuss the candidates and narrow their choices to two.

Pokorney said the meeting was closed, even though there was a quorum of city councilors and the meeting was not recorded – apparent violations of the state’s Open Meeting Law.

A subsequent meeting, to discuss the two finalists, was open to the public.

Staff Writer Mollee Francisco contributed to this report.