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Bloomington mayor-elect Kerry Thomson names most top staff picks, cascade of caucuses could result

Bloomington mayor-elect Kerry Thomson names most top staff picks, cascade of caucuses could result

In a Friday morning news release on the first day of December, Bloomington mayor-elect Kerry Thomson announced most, but not all, of the department heads who will be a part of her administration starting on Jan. 1, 2024.

Replacing Larry Allen as deputy mayor will be Gretchen Knapp, who is head of operations and marketing for The Mill.

Returning will be some familiar faces: Mike Diekhoff (chief of police); Jason Moore (fire chief); Adam Wason (director of public works); Andrew Cibor (city engineer); Tim Street (now interim director of parks and recreation); and Rick Dietz (director of IT).

Returning on an interim basis will be Beverly Calender-Anderson who is head of CFRD (community and family resources department).

Coming on board only as interim to serve as head of city of Bloomington utilities will be John Langley. According to Thomson’s news release, Langley, retired as the CBU’s deputy director in 2019, is a former deputy mayor, personnel director, and housing code enforcement officer.

That means Vic Kelson will not be returning as CBU director.

Also not returning are HAND (housing and neighborhood development) director John Zody and planning and transportation director Scott Robinson. But Friday’s news release does not name interim or permanent replacements for those two departments.

Friday’s news release indicates that Thomson will conduct searches for permanent replacements for planning, HAND, CFRD, and CBU.

Corporation counsel Beth Cate will be replaced by Margie Rice, who also served as mayor Mark Kruzan’s legal department head and more recently as an attorney for Monroe County.

Holly Warren has been serving as interim director of economic and sustainable development (ESD), after Alex Crowley left earlier this summer. Thomson’s permanent pick will be Jane Kupersmith, who currently serves as executive director of CDFI Friendly Bloomington. Kupersmith previously worked in the city’s ESD department as assistant director of small business development.

Kupersmith’s name could also be familiar as co-founder of Hopscotch Coffee and Rainbow Bakery. Kupersmith was recently appointed to serve on the board of public works. It’s not clear if she will continue to serve on that board.

Since Caroline Shaw resigned at the end of last year, Emily Pierson has been serving as interim director of human resources. Thomson’s pick for the permanent HR director is Sharmaine Pechac. According to Thomson’s news release, Pechac founded GreyPrint Consulting and is a senior certified professional by the Society for Human Resource Management. Pechac has a doctorate from the University of Toledo, according to the news release.

Thomson’s news release names current Monroe County treasurer Jessica McClellan to replace retiring Jeff Underwood as city controller. Serving as McClellan’s deputy controller on an interim basis will be Kurt Zorn. Zorn is described in Thomson’s news release as a longtime Indiana University economist, professor, associate vice provost, and public finance expert.

McClellan’s appointment will have implications for Monroe County’s Democratic Party, because county treasurer is an elected position. She’s a Democrat. That means the Democratic Party will need to hold a caucus to appoint her replacement. That caucus can’t take place until McClellan resigns and there is a vacancy. In a news release that followed Thomson’s, McClellan indicated that her resignation is effective Dec. 31, 2023.

Reached by phone, McClellan told The B Square that she is staying on through the end of the year, because she wants to ensure that the transition to her successor is as seamless as possible. “I just want to make sure that everything is perfect,” she said.

In the month of December, there are still a lot of year-end reporting requirements that county treasurers have to make to the state, she said. One of the mid-December responsibilities for the county treasurer is to distribute property taxes to other local units of government.

McClellan said she’d told her staff of her upcoming departure only after Thomson’s announcement Friday morning.

McClellan is term limited as treasurer. The position is up for election in 2024, as is the position of county auditor. McClellan formed a campaign committee to run for auditor.

Current county auditor Catherine Smith, who is also a Democrat and term-limited in that office, has formed a committee to run for treasurer. Friday’s announcement from Thomson means that the swap of treasurer for auditor won’t happen.

But there will be a new county treasurer one year sooner than expected. Smith is expected to stand as a candidate in the Democratic Party’s caucus to fill the treasurer’s position. If Smith is selected by the precinct chairs of the party to be Monroe County’s next treasure through 2024, the party will have to hold a second caucus to fill the auditor’s vacancy. Smith would still have to run for election in 2024 to serve as treasurer for a four-year term starting in 2025.

Reached by The B Square, Monroe County Democratic Party chair David Henry said that the treasurer’s caucus will likely be held in late January. The auditor’s caucus, if it’s necessary, would be held after the treasurer’s caucus, because there won’t be a vacancy for auditor, unless Smith stands as a candidate in the caucus and is selected as treasurer.

About Friday morning’s announcement, Henry said that he is impressed with Thomson’s choice of McClellan as city controller. He said, “Jessica ran a respectable and professional campaign for state treasurer last year.” Henry added, “While we will miss her service as county treasurer, I am excited for her new opportunity to serve the city.”

A Democrat, Thomson was unopposed on the Nov. 7 ballot. Current Bloomington mayor John Hamilton did not seek re-election. Thomson prevailed in the Democratic Party’s primary over Susan Sandberg and Don Griffin.

 
Photos and verbatim text from Thomson’s news release:

Deputy Mayor: Mayor-Elect Thomson will appoint Gretchen Knapp as Deputy Mayor to oversee the daily operations of city hall. Currently the head of both operations and marketing for The Mill, Knapp has worked as an entrepreneur, executive, and freelance consultant throughout her career. She is a graduate of Kalamazoo College and earned her master’s degree from Indiana University.

 

Controller: Monroe County Treasurer Jessica McClellan will join the Thomson administration as Bloomington’s chief financial officer. As City Controller, McCellan will manage the city’s finance department as well as its overall budget and accounting systems. A graduate of Indiana University, McClellan will resign as County Treasurer effective December 31, 2023, to take on the new role.

 

Deputy Controller: Longtime Indiana University economist, professor, associate vice provost, and public finance expert Kurt Zorn, will join the Thomson administration as Deputy City Controller on an interim basis. Zorn, who earned his doctorate and master’s degrees from Syracuse University, serves on the city’s Economic Development Commission as well as the Indiana Finance Authority and is a past chair of the Indiana State Board of Tax Commissioners

 

CFRD: Mayor-Elect Thomson will appoint Beverly Calender-Anderson to serve as Director of the Community and Family Resources Department on an interim basis. Calender-Anderson has held the position since 2014 and announced her retirement earlier this year. A graduate of Judson University, she previously served as the City’s Safe and Civil City Director.

 

Corporation Counsel: Margie Rice will be appointed Corporation Counsel, leading the City’s Legal Department in the Thomson administration. A graduate of Butler University, Rice earned her law degree from the Maurer School of Law, graduating cum laude. During her 25-year legal career, she has served as a deputy prosecuting attorney, represented clients in private practice, and was a member of municipal legal teams at both Monroe County and City of Bloomington governments. Rice previously served as Corporation Counsel during the Kruzan administration.

 

Economic and Sustainable Development: Jane Kupersmith will join the Thomson Administration as the Director of Economic and Sustainable Development. She currently serves as Executive Director of CDFI Friendly Bloomington, which works to attract community development capital to the Indiana Uplands. A former Assistant Director of Small Business Development for the city from 2020 to 2022, Kupersmith also co-founded Hopscotch Coffee in 2014 and co-owned Rainbow Bakery from 2017 to 2023.

 

City Engineer: Mayor-Elect Thomson will reappoint Andrew Cibor as City Engineer. A graduate of Northwestern University and member of the Institute of Transportation Engineers, Cibor has led the city’s Engineering Department since its inception in 2021. Previously, he served as the city’s Transportation and Traffic Engineer in the Planning & Transportation Department from 2015 to 2018.

 

Human Resources: Sharmaine Pechac will be appointed to serve as Director of Human Resources in the Thomson administration. Pechac founded GreyPrint Consulting and is a senior certified professional by the Society for Human Resource Management. She has a doctorate from the University of Toledo and bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Akron.

 

IT: Rick Dietz will be reappointed to serve as the Director of the Department of Information & Technology Services in the Thomson administration. Dietz, who has held the position since 2004, earned his undergraduate and master’s degrees from Indiana University.

 

Parks and Recreation: Mayor-Elect Thomson will name Tim Street as the Parks & Recreation Department Director. Street, who has served as the department’s Operations and Development Director since 2021, previously worked at Indiana University. He holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Indiana University.

 

Police Chief: Continuing his long service to the Bloomington community, Mayor-Elect Thomson will reappoint Mike Diekhoff as Police Chief. Diekhoff, who has been on the force since 1987, has been Chief since 2008. Diekhoff is a graduate of Indiana University.

 

Fire Chief: Jason Moore will be reappointed as Bloomington’s Fire Chief by Mayor-Elect Thomson. Serving in the role since 2016, Moore previously worked in fire departments throughout South Carolina, served in the United States Air Force and worked as a consultant. He earned his undergraduate and master’s degrees from Columbia Southern University and a second master’s degree from Strayer University.

 

Public Works: Mayor-Elect Thomson will reappoint Adam Wason as Director of Bloomington’s Department of Public Works. An experienced public servant, he has been in the role since 2016 and previously served as Deputy Mayor, the city’s Communications Director, and in the Economic and Sustainable Development and Utilities Departments. Wason earned both his undergraduate and two master’s certificates from the O’Neil School at Indiana University.

 

Utilities: Mayor Elect Thomson will appoint John Langley as the interim Public Utilities Department Director. Langley, who retired as the department’s deputy director in 2019, is a former Deputy Mayor, Personnel Director, and Housing Code Enforcement Officer.

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