City to be put into Rose’s hands

Dan Kulin

Friday, July 25, 2003 | 9:23 a.m.

North Las Vegas Assistant City Manager Gregory Rose was expected to be appointed acting city manager during a special City Council meeting today.

The appointment would temporarily fill the vacancy left when the council fired former City Manager Kurt Fritsch on July 16.

Since the firing four of the five council members, including the mayor, have said Rose will probably be promoted to acting city manager.

Rose and fellow Assistant City Manager Dan Tarwater have shared the responsibility of the top job since Fritsch left. Under Fritsch, Rose focused on development issues and Tarwater oversaw administrative matters.

Mayor Michael Montandon said Rose was the preferred choice for the temporary position because most of the major departments, including public works, community development, development services, parks and fire, already answered to him as assistant city manager.

Also, the police chief and city public information officer have reported to Rose since Fritsch's firing because Rose is the senior assistant city manager.

Tarwater oversees departments including finance, human resources, and administrative services. He also serves as liaison to Municipal Court and the North Las Vegas Library District.

Rose's $129,375 annual salary will not be increased because of the interim appointment, Montandon said.

The mayor said the council will probably take a few months to find a new city manager. The search will include advertising through government-oriented magazines and the International City/County Management Association, he said.

Rose has expressed an interest in becoming the next permanent city manager, the mayor said.

Rose was hired as an assistant city manager in February 2001. Before then he was a deputy city manager in University City, Mo., and an assistant city manager in Warrensburg, Mo. Rose has a master's degree in public affairs and a bachelor's degree in public administration from the University of Texas at Dallas.

Last week the council wasn't expected to appoint an acting city manager until Aug. 6. But Montandon said there was no sense waiting to make a decision the council probably should have made right after firing Fritsch, so he called a special meeting for today.

The council voted 5-0 to fire Fritsch without first meeting to discuss Fritsch's job performance or explaining their votes during the meeting.

Since the vote, council members have been vague about why they decided to get rid of Fritsch, saying they wanted to go in a different direction.

About a week before the vote, the council rejected an offer from Fritsch that he resign in a few months and receive severance pay.

By firing Fritsch before the end of his contract, the council opted instead to pay him $127,066, which was half of his roughly $150,000 salary plus pay for any accrued vacation days and half of his unused sick days.

Fritsch has questioned whether the council followed proper procedure in firing him.

Fritsch said Thursday that he has not decided whether he will sue the city over his firing, and refused to comment on other aspects of the matter.