Carson City residents who need a break from watching war news on television can tune in Saturday to get a glimpse of eight candidates for the job of city manager.
As the eight sit down with panels of city workers and community members, cable television Channel 26 will provide viewers the opportunity to get to know something about them.
The manager post is the single most important in Carson City government. Elected supervisors set policy, but any one of them can be outvoted by the others. They are the voice for the city and set the tone, but the day-to-day administration of that policy is at the hands of the city manager.
On the average, city managers are on the job at least four or five years -- longer than a single term for a supervisor. In John Berkich's case, his dozen years of tenure as Carson's manager was longer than any current supervisor.
How much can residents learn from the interviews on Saturday?
We can get a sense of priorities, of personality and style, of knowledge of the issues important to Carson City. We can judge how well the process has gone so far in winnowing the field. When three finalists are chosen, we can have a sense of how they stacked up against the other top candidates.
Because selection of a city manager hasn't happened in more than a dozen years, it's important Carson City residents show an active and informed interest in the outcome.
The choice will be up to the five supervisors and, like any hiring decision, will be a difficult one. From the resumes of the eight remaining applicants, we feel confident the three finalists will all be top-notch.
The Saturday interviews will help fill in some of the intangible blanks that can't be read on a resume. By attending or watching on TV, the residents of Carson City can help supervisors make that difficult choice.
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