In a Special City Council Meeting held on Monday, February 13th, the Soldotna City Council approved unanimously to begin contract discussions with Janette Bower to be the next Soldotna City Manager.
After a brief executive session, Soldotna Vice Mayor Lisa Parker made a motion to the council;
“I move to extend a conditional offer to Janette Bower for the position of city manager. Subject to a successful background check and contract negotiations. Upon completion of a successful background check the mayor and vice mayor are authorized to enter into contract negotiations with the candidate.”
According to documents from the City of Soldotna, Janette Bower, currently serves as the City Manager for the City of Seward and has held the position since May of 2021.
Bower’s experience includes having clerked in Bethel and Palmer and city administration in Minnesota. She holds a diploma from Magic City High School in Minot. North Dakota.
In a cover letter sent to the City of Soldotna, Bower stated,
I currently serve as the Seward City Manager and believe I possess the knowledge and expertise to serve as the Soldotna City Manager.
I have served in local government for 20 years, 15 of those years in Alaska. I am a well-rounded individual that truly loves local government and I possess an approachable leadership style that fosters teamwork to accomplish goals.
I believe in open, honest communication and working collaboratively towards a goal. This transparency is applied within the organization, with stakeholders, and the public. My motto is, “tell me where you want to go and I will do my best to get you there”.
I enjoy refining and developing new processes and procedures to create greater efficiencies. I believe in “uncomplicating” the governmental processes to provide the public with a greater understanding of their local government.
In each of the communities I have served, I have made it my goal to be a part of the community. By immersing myself in the community I am not only able to learn the needs but to experience them as well. I also believe this immersion has created a sense of community trust and awareness that I know and understand what is going on.
Throughout my career I have demonstrated my ability to maintain a neutral political stance. I believe everyone has a right to their stance and it is my duty to remain impartial and to complete my work according to the established policies, procedures, municipal code, statutes, and council directives.
At the close of the special city council meeting, Soldotna Vice Mayor Lisa Parker spoke on city manager hiring process;
“I just want to again thank all of the individuals who submitted their resumes for our consideration to be Soldotna City Manager we had a great pool of applicants from which to select from and I look forward to the future years as we move forward with our new city manager.”
The Soldotna City Council, on February 8th, approved a two-month extension to the current contract for City Manager Stephanie Queen to allow for a smooth transition, extending Queen’s contract through April 28, 2023. Queen announced she would not seek to renew her employment contract with the City of Soldotna on November 29, 2022. Queen’s original employment agreement expires on February 28, 2023.
