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Committee considers setting residency radius for city manager; seeks contract flexibility and grandfathering
Summary
Members debated requiring a city manager to live within a specified distance of the city and discussed statutory limits, grandfathering current employees and contract-based time to relocate; no final language adopted.
The committee discussed proposed changes to the city-manager residency requirement (Section 7.2), including whether to require the manager to be a resident of the city or live within a specified distance of the city limits.
Members reviewed Michigan statute language that permits a public employer to require residence within a specified distance (20 miles or greater) and noted councils may set a distance and impose relocation timelines in a contract. Several members favored a residency expectation to promote local engagement and emergency responsiveness, while others urged flexibility to attract candidates, suggesting contractual relocation timelines (for example, 90 days to one year) and grandfathering for current employees.
Committee members suggested language that would require future hires to establish residency within a specified radius (committee discussion suggested 20'25 miles) within a set period after hire, with the charter explicitly not applying retroactively to current incumbents. Members also discussed including incentives such as relocation assistance in contracts.
Ending: The committee asked staff and counsel to draft language that reflects a residency radius and reasonable relocation timeframe (with grandfathering for current employees) for further consideration at a subsequent meeting.
