Former Battle Ground City Manager David Mercier, 61, will be Vancouver’s next second-in-command.
The new assistant city manager actually was Vancouver City Manager Eric Holmes’ boss when Holmes was the planning manager and assistant city manager in Battle Ground in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Holmes announced his selection to the city council and city staff Monday afternoon.
“Dave has extensive experience leading local governments in a changing environment,” Holmes said in a news release. “That experience, and his collaborative and engaging leadership style, came through in the feedback from city staff and community members involved in the selection process. I feel fortunate to have someone with Dave’s experience join the city’s management team.”
Mercier will report directly to Holmes and will oversee the city’s Human Resources, Information Technology and General Services departments. He will also work closely with the city’s senior managers on a daily basis and direct interdisciplinary teams responsible for a variety of organizational initiatives. Mercier’s first day on the job will be March 31. His salary will be $135,000 annually, plus benefits.
Mercier served as the first city manager for the city of Spokane Valley, from when it incorporated in 2003 until January 2010, when he was asked to resign by a new city council.
A news report by the The Spokesman-Review said Mercier approached the council about resigning “because he knew that the new City Council was going in a new direction.” The council, in turn, expressed concern about Mercier living outside city limits and also doing consulting work on the side.
Mercier said Monday that there was no major dispute in Spokane Valley, but his moving on was the result of “changing political winds.” City managers have an average tenure of five to seven years.
“I had seven wonderful years working with an energetic and engaged city council,” he said. “In the way that is this career field, the city manager serves at pleasure of the city council. There were no negative words spoken; they simply wanted to have someone new.”
Mercier was also Battle Ground’s first city manager, serving from 1997 to 2001.
“I think this is a great opportunity to work with a very talented staff as they meet the challenges of today and work to position the future,” Mercier said by phone Monday.
He said he lives within Vancouver’s urban growth area and his consulting work with cities will “dwindle down to maybe just a little bit,” and will in no way conflict with his time or city interests.
He was pulled from a pool of four finalists, including Elizabeth Gotelli, Vancouver’s Human Resources director; Mark Hoppen, a consultant and former Puyallup Public Works director and former Gig Harbor city manager; and Jennifer Phillips, a consultant and former assistant city manager of Santa Monica, Calif.
Unlike several other high-profile jobs, Vancouver did not hire an outside consultant to conduct this job search, as it did with the recent hire of former Vancouver Assistant Fire Chief Joe Molina to take the fire chief position, and in its hiring of Holmes as city manager. Vancouver is still in the process of hiring a public information officer and a volunteer coordinator.
Prior to coming to Southwest Washington, Mercier spent six years as town manager in Fairfield, Maine, and another six years as town manager in Baileyville, Maine. He also was assistant town manager in Houlton, Maine, for 1½ years.
He holds a master’s degree in educational administration from the University of Maine. He and his wife, Jane, have three grown sons.
Mercier fills a position left vacant by Holmes, who was appointed city manager Nov. 1. Holmes’ salary in that position was $122,868. Before that, Betsy Williams was the assistant city manager until her retirement in 2010.
Andrea Damewood: 360-735-4542 or andrea.damewood@columbian.com.
