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Keokuk Announces Finalists In City Administrator Search

Keokuk has publicly announced the five finalists in its search for a new city administrator. They will travel to the city this weekend for their official interviews.

  • Jeffrey Eder – Current City Administrator in East Peoria, Ill.
  • Annette Ernst – Current Village Administrator in Coal Valley, Ill.
  • Joseph Gaa – Current City Administrator in Chariton, Iowa
  • Cole O’Donnell – Former City Administrator in Dixon, Ill.
  • Elizabeth Tucker – Former City Administrator in Chesterfield, Mo.

A total of 27 people applied to replace Aaron Burnett, who is stepping down as Keokuk City Administrator on June 22, 2018 to take the same job in Mason City, Iowa.
The firm hired to lead the search for Burnett’s replacement presented the Keokuk City Council with nine semi-finalists late last month. The city council met behind closed doors for about 90 minutes on May 24, 2018 before selecting the five finalists.

The city waited, though, to release the names until it received permission to do so from each finalist.

The five finalists will participate in community tours on Friday as well as a public reception from 5:00 – 7:00 p.m. at either the riverfront depot or the shelter house in Victory Park, depending on the weather.

The finalists will be interviewed behind closed doors on Saturday. The interviews will be conducted by members of the city council, city staff, and select members of the public.

The timeline provided by the consulting firm calls for the city council to identify its top candidate following the interviews and to authorize contract negotiations to begin. The city is not expected to name its new city administrator until after the two sides have agreed on a contract.

Jason Parrott is a former reporter at Tri States Public Radio.