Blaine City Council unanimously approved Michael Harmon’s employment contract as city manager during the December 12 council meeting. Harmon is the chief operating officer of an electric utility provider in Wyoming and former city administrator of Spearfish, South Dakota.
“My family and I are looking forward to returning to the Pacific Northwest and making Blaine our home,” Harmon said in an email to The Northern Light. “Blaine is a special community with great potential and I am eager to work with the council, city staff and the community to unlock some of the potential while maintaining Blaine’s unique and special charm.”
Council interviewed four final candidates last week and subsequently evaluated them in a December 1 executive session. Harmon is expected to start the job on January 16, 2023.
Harmon has worked as chief operating officer of High Plains Power in Riverton, Wyoming since July 2021, according to his resume. He said after being recruited to the positon he realized he preferred the public sector because of its impact on local communities and varied work.
Harmon worked as city administrator of Spearfish, South Dakota, population 12,300, from 2017 to 2021. As Spearfish city administrator, Harmon led 125 full-time staff members, oversaw a $42 million operational budget and improved water infrastructure. He supervised the development of a 300-home affordable housing project, 40-acre sports complex and an $8 million streetscape renovation.
Before Spearfish, Harmon was the city administrator of Fairfield, Iowa, a city of 9,600 people, for two years. Harmon also worked as a police officer in Pierre, South Dakota and for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. A Fairfield native, Harmon earned his bachelor of arts in economics from the University of Northern Iowa and earned his master of public administration from the University of South Dakota.
“Having 11 years of leadership experience – eight as a city administrator – as well as law enforcement experience and electric utility experience, I am uniquely qualified to be Blaine’s next city manager,” Harmon wrote in his cover letter to the city.
The city of Blaine had a budget of $65 million and about 70 full-time employees to run the city of about 6,000 people in 2022.
Harmon, a father of two, said he was looking to relocate his family long term to the Pacific Northwest where his father’s side of the family originates. He was also a finalist for city manager positions in Topeka, Kansas and Astoria, Oregon late this summer, according to articles in the Topeka Capital-Journal and The Daily Astorian.
Harmon will earn $170,000 annually with 26 vacation days and up to $15,000 in moving expenses.
Blaine’s city manager position was left vacant when Michael Jones resigned in June after four years in the position. Dave Wilbrecht, who was city manager before Jones, has served in the interim.
“I think Blaine is a special community and look forward to making it my home,” Harmon said.
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