East Grand Rapids residents will have the opportunity to meet the candidates for their new city manager on Thursday, Jan. 10.
The City Commission will hold a public open house in Commission Chambers from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. on Jan. 10 to allow residents to meet and talk with prospective candidates. Twenty-eight municipal leaders from around the country applied for the position, which will be open as current City Manager Brian Donovan retires in January after 25 years of service.
Candidates for the position include:
- Eric Zuzga, who is the current village manager of Quincy, Michigan and has more than 15 years of local government experience. Zuzga was previously the executive director at Branch County Economic Growth Alliance.
- Assistant Village Manager of Schiller Park, Illinois, Brian Bursiek, who has more than 20 years of municipal experience. Prior to his managerial roles, Bursiek was a criminal prosecutor in Calhoun and Gladwin counties and spent four years working as an assistant city attorney in Grosse Point, Michigan.
- Emmanuel Toribio has 10 years of municipal and managerial experience. He is currently serving as the assistant director of facilities planning and management at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa. Before working for Drake, Toribio spent three years working as a city administrator for Prairie City, Iowa.
- Formerly the manager of Carolina Beach, North Carolina, Michael Cramer has 24 years of experience in local government management, including serving as the city manager of Menominee, Michigan.
- Mitchell Foster, who is the current village administrator for the village of Winneconne in Wisconsin, has seven years of municipal experience. He previously worked for the village of Kingsley in Michigan.
The commission hopes to fill the position based on the interviews held on Jan. 11, beginning at 8:30 a.m. in the Commission Chambers. Candidates’ résumés are available upon request. Interviews are open to the public.
Resumes of the candidates are available upon request by emailing City Clerk Karen Brower at kbrower@eastgr.org.
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