NICK GOSNELL
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Interim Hutchinson City Manager Mary Grace Clements has her eye on a few main priorities in her time in this job.
First priority, first and foremost, is to fill our open position with a Chief of Police for Hutchinson," Clements said Monday. "It's very important that we fill that role. I think we're very focused on that right now, with our HR team."
There are other department head positions to be filled, but this is the one that they are working on in earnest right now.
"It's going to be a multi-leveled approach, where we have a panel that is from directors. We're hoping Chief Beer will step in to help and other directors that work currently in the city. Another panel would be comprised of some community members to make sure that we have input also from the community, because they impact and have direct connection to the Chief of Police and also the FOP that we have on board."
The hope is to push the process along relatively quickly.
"My hope is to have a very clear picture by the end of this month," Clements said. "We have some candidates that we're going to start to look to interview and get those set up. It's an aggressive timeline, but obviously, it's so vital. We have to get moving on it. We can be interviewing to find out either who is going to move further along in the process or who we're going to focus and step away from in the process. The fact is, we have to get the process moving. That's the first step."
The goal would be to get someone in place by the end of the summer.
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