Kalamazoo commission interviews three city‑manager finalists, delays fourth to Friday Zoom session

The Kalamazoo City Commission on Oct. 15 conducted Committee of the Whole interviews with three finalists for the next city manager and unanimously voted to recess the meeting and hold the fourth finalist’s interview by Zoom at 7 a.m. Friday.

The interviews were part of a national recruitment led by consultant Pamela Weidman of Raftelis. Weidman told the commission the search drew more than 400 community survey responses and that the public could submit feedback on candidates through Friday, Oct. 17; the commission is scheduled to make a final selection at its Oct. 20 meeting.

The interviews were conducted in a round‑robin format with a 50‑minute allotment for each candidate. Mayor Anderson opened the session and introduced Raftelis’ Weidman, who said the community meet‑and‑greet the previous evening and the survey responses helped inform the commission’s questions.

Candidate highlights

- Malcolm Hankins emphasized neighborhood engagement and housing work, saying, “I have 35 years in government,” and describing experience with neighborhood services, permitting and affordable‑housing strategies. He said he would start by reviewing Kalamazoo’s existing plans and road maps and focus on intentional…