John Scarffe, Nederland.  Two of the three finalists selected for Nederland Town administrator came for interviews on Monday, May 22. At 2:30 p.m., C. Michael Foote was interviewed by the Board of Trustees while Karen Gerrity was interviewed by Nederland staff department heads. Then they swapped, with Gerrity being interviewed by the Board while Foote was interviewed by department heads.

At 4 p.m., the candidates met with about 20 members of the general public during a moderated discussion. The Board is still trying to nail down an interview date with the third finalist, Therron Dieckman.

Foote said he is currently living in Reading, Pennsylvania, but he listed his address on his resume as Gillette, Wyoming. He earned a Bachelor’s degree in Oceanographic Technology from the Florida Institute of Technology and a Master’s degrees in public administration from the University of Wyoming, Laramie, and in psychology from Naropa University, in Boulder.

From 2009 to 2016, he was the waste diversion/sustainability manager for the City of Gillette. Foote was the community relations & business development manager for Eco-Cycle in Boulder from 2008 to 2009, and from 2005 to 2008 he was the territory manager for Douglas Labs in Denver. He was also a personal trainer and wellness coach for RallySport in Denver, and was Vice President and co-owner of Florida Recycling Systems, Inc., in Stuart, Florida.

Gerrity, who lives on Camp Eden Road in Coal Creek Canyon, earned a Bachelor’s and a Master’s degree in education from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. In 2002, she was honored as one of four women who “Light up the Community” by the Boulder Chamber of Commerce.

Since 2008, Gerrity has been the cultural affairs manager for the City and County of Broomfield, Colorado. From 2004 to 2012 she was an Advisory Board Member for US Bank. From 2005 to 2008, she was the Deputy District Administrator for the Scientific and Cultural Facilities District of the Denver Metro Area. She was chief operating officer for etown from 2004 to 2005. She was executive director of The Dairy Center for the Arts from 2001 to 2004 and founding business director for Boulder Country Day School from 1988 to 2001.

Mayor Kristopher Larsen opened the public interviews and then took questions from Nederland area residents in attendance. Atashnaa Werner asked why are you the best candidates for the job and what experience have you had with affordable housing.

Gerrity said she lives close by and enjoys coming to Nederland. She comes to town for a lot of different reasons, including shopping at B&F Market and ACE Hardware. “I understand what this place is about, but I’m not so close that I have an agenda.” As a neighbor, she is concerned about fires and floods and how we’re preparing for that in the future.

She has not had experience with affordable housing in Nederland, but in Broomfield it’s a subject of big conversation. They have no solutions yet but are trying to pinpoint the right place and how it would be subsidized.

“It’s vital for the community. The housing market has gone crazy, and we need to keep housing affordable,” Gerrity said. This is a conversation she will have with the staff and community.

Foote said he received a Master’s in public administration last summer and has been involved in government for the past eight years, being familiar with zero waste goals. He has experience and a breadth of knowledge. In Florida, he watched changes being made, the importance of being able to manage growth and the strain on staff.

“How do we best serve citizens? How do we operate in an effective and economical way?” Foote asked. He has owned rental property before, and it would be a concern for him if he moves here. He understands it is a difficulty here and feels the need for that kind of development.

Randy Lee said the Town has been spoiled with the last Town administrator, who raised the bar higher. “Both of you are thin as far as top administrative experience. What qualities offset that thinness? Why should we hire you instead of going back out and looking again?”

Foote said that is a concern and was one for him in applying for the position, but he has government experience and has worked for four different mayors and town administrators. He has the ability to find touch points throughout an organization.

Foote also has managed the ups and downs on a variety of projects and initiatives and has worked with an entire staff. He also has a network. “I don’t view coming to Nederland as being isolated. I am able to tie in with administrators and friends and talk to them on the telephone and be able to work together.” As a recent graduate, he still has that network and available resources.

Gerrity said that she has never been a town administrator but has 14 years of experience leading a nonprofit and 16 years in government. She managed a $42 million budget in a seven-county area. The money she managed went out to 320 organizations, and she had a board of government.

In Broomfield, she has been managing facilities and programs “I’m working with all divisions -- police, parks, finance and legal for facilities management.” She also managed restoration of an historic building. As executive director of Boulder Country Day School, she managed a budget that was bigger than Nederland’s.

Gerrity said her combination of government and nonprofit experience is magical. “You have to think creatively on managing these things. I understand the most important part of our jobs is that these are tax dollars, and we need to be good stewards and make sure the taxpayers are listened to. I can’t say I’m the best candidate, but I would do the best I can for you and have the resources to get there.”

Dale Porter asked, “What’s your sense of the outlook for grant funding for a town like Nederland?” Foot said he has had experience looking for funding, and alternative funding will be an important component for Nederland. He would think outside the box.

In his recent experience in Gillette, the town had natural gas, and, for a period of time, the town had a lot of funding, but now it is experiencing a downturn and having to rethink how they do business. He would look to state representatives to help manage these things and to think of a better way to solve these challenges.

Gerrity said she would have to be creative. “We might be in a downturn in the economy, so it’s critical to look at other opportunities. Matching funds are out there through Colorado creative industries. We would do something like that ASAP. Now’s the time. If we haven’t looked at the resources out there, we should, and we should take advantage of them. Staff may know of some of these out there.”

Carole Handler asked what would be their first five priorities and what they could do to help with the drug problem that is affecting our whole nation.

Foote said that his main goal is to come and serve the Town of Nederland -- service to the citizens, the business community and our guests and visitors. He would come in and work with each of those constituents.

He would hope to create a ripple and not a tidal wave -- coming in as a key member and creating as little havoc as possible. As far as drugs, he found out through the police that in Northeast, rural Wyoming, things are going on there. In Reading, they are pulling people out of bathrooms who have overdosed. He did spend time at Naropa University, and Social Services is a huge component of what we’re going to have to focus on.

Gerrity said for the first five priorities she would get to know the staff, shadow department heads and get to see their world and what resources they have. She would get to know the Trustees and get to know the community better. She sees herself walking around town and getting to know the community, and she’d look to guiding documents, like the comprehensive plan, Vision 2020 and the website to learn more about Nederland.

She has four children, and drug abuse is part of being a parent. She would extrapolate from that and make sure people are valued and have opportunities to develop themselves. She would keep people active in a healthy way.

“I can’t say enough about education and awareness and making sure we have some sort of support. We have resources and opportunities to address this.”

Jill Dreves, who runs the Wild Bear Ecology Center, said that when she sees an article in the Boulder Daily Camera about Nederland she cringes at the word quirky. She has spent the last 23 years building an identity for the community which revolves around the natural world. Nederland has the massive potential to be something besides quirky. She sees Nederland’s Vision 2020 and being a cutting edge community with a huge potential to make a statement nationally.

“What will you do and what is your philosophy to make us anything but quirky?”

Gerrity said that she loves Mud Lake. It’s so approachable, and if you want to take a great hike, there are resources, so thanks for taking care of it. Nederland is so much more than quirky.

When she comes up Boulder Canyon and sees the lake, she asks, “Why wouldn’t you want to work here? I feel my role is to be an ambassador, and that’s an important part of the job -- telling the story of all the things that Nederland is. It’s more than Frozen Dead Guy Days.”

Renewable energy is a great goal, and if you have the right people on the bus, you can get there. Broomfield had that as a goal, and she would be happy to share that information.

Foote said that he appreciates identifying a difference in language. “We need to embrace diversity. I love that. It didn’t feel good to be homogenous.” He wrote companion articles for a journal on sustainability.

“We set goals, but it’s the expectations that can be challenging. How do we take them on in bite sized pieces?” He is interested in forming public and private partnerships. In the discussion of affordable housing, he thought about an article on Tiny Houses. “What if there was a way to create a tiny house community?

“We should learn from others’ experiences and implement them for the community. How do we learn from our mistakes? We should put pilot projects in place, and if we goof up, we’re not going to break the bank.”

Nederland Downtown Development Authority Chair Katrina Harms asked about the role of economic development and function of a DDA?

Gerrity said that in Broomfield she was on committee with the chamber of commerce and created a business resource center that provided a shared space for developing a business. It included a lot of free courses, and they worked to put those together with programs. She is comfortable working with business development and worked with downtown businesses in Boulder. She would have a role as Town administrator in supporting the DDA.

Foote said that he would be an ambassador and someone who would advocate for businesses and economic development. Stuart, Florida, had a period of time when downtown was vibrant, but after some changes, downtown was not a pretty place to hang out.

He worked to create a vibrant downtown, and that is the role of the town administrator to get a sense of what it could be and working with the Board to accomplish that. “More and bigger is not always better. How do we make what we have just a little bit more?”

Town Staff Member Cynthia Bakke said that Nederland is poised at a place of change. How would you hold a space of strength despite contention while remaining flexible?

Foote said that having a strong foundation is important and being able to hold the structure so things can happen within a structure. He would need to do some planning and thinking. He lived in a small town of Florida, and when he first moved there, he would drive to the beach and sand, but that is all asphalt now. Another community had the foresight to put in the planning, so when growth occurred they had the structure in place to handle it.

Gerrity said that holding space resonates with her, because she was a volunteer with a hospice. “How do you hold space and have conversations so everyone feels valued? We need to meet people where they are.”

In Broomfield, the population went bonkers, growing from 20,000 to 60,000. “The housing is going crazy, and so much building is going on it’s insane.”

Original ranchers built their homes right after World War II, and then it went from a small community to a big one with Staples and other businesses.

“It’s been a very tricky road. We have met people where they are, and the cultural landscape has changed dramatically. Some people don’t want others to come in and some do. It’s going back to creating space where we can have that conversation where everyone feels valued. I feel strongest when I am meeting people where they are and not coming with an agenda.”

The final question regarded the references they have listed and what they might say about them. Gerrity said she listed a city council woman, one who runs the chamber in Boulder and a previous partner and nonprofit leader.

“The Boulder Country Day partner would tell you that I can do anything. Not that I have all the skills, but I’ll figure it out, and, if I make a mistake, I’ll fail fast and I’ll pivot. I’ll help solve the problem.”

Foote said he listed former directors and colleagues he worked with. “Craig would probably say I’m not afraid to face challenges. I’m going to step in and hear all the no’s and negatives and why we can’t do that. We got to know one another at the state level. I was willing to step in and be patient because you can’t change things immediately.

Larsen ended the meeting by thanking those in attendance for coming and the candidates for the long afternoon of interviews.

(Originally published in the May 25, 2017 print edition of The Mountain-Ear.)