Brad Ryan served as Haines interim manager twice. (Emily Files)
The Municipality of Skagway has offered the vacant Borough Manager position to Haines Public Facilities Director Brad Ryan. Henry Leasia has more.
Skagway’s manager search committee held in-person interviews with three candidates on Thursday. The other candidates were Patrick Jordan, the current City Manager of Escanaba, Michigan and Randy Robertson, the City Manager of Aberdeen, Maryland. Both had served in that position in Alaska before.
During his interview, Ryan said he wanted to serve as Skagway’s Borough Manager because it would be a step up from his current position in Haines.
“I’ve been living in Southeast Alaska for 10 years. I want to stay here,” Ryan said. “It seems like you have a lot going on here. It’s interesting. You have some big challenges that seem of interest. The obvious answer to me is that it’s a step up and an opportunity to engage in what I think is a little bit bigger playing field in a good community.”
Ryan did raise concerns about turnover for the position.
“You’ve had managers come and go. Do you think things are conducive to keeping a manager here a long time? I think that’s the big question. I don’t want to be hopping a lot of positions.”
Assemblyman Steve Burnham responded that the municipality has had success keeping manager’s when there is clear communication.
“It is our intent to try to get a manager that would like to stay here. I think part of what worked with Scott Hahn being here for 5 years was communication. He let us know what was going on with him and how we could help,” Burnham said.
Former Skagway Borough Manager Scott Hahn left Alaska for a job in Colorado last summer in order to be closer to his family. Since then, the municipality has hired two interim managers while looking for a replacement.
At a meeting Thursday night, the Skagway Borough Assembly voted unanimously to offer the manager position to Ryan.
He was unavailable for comment by broadcast time.
