Finalists announced for Mankato City Manager position

(Mankato, MN) – Four finalists have been selected by the Mankato City Council for the city manager position, which will open when current administrator Pat Hentges retires at the end of the year.

Well-qualified candidates from across the country applied for the position, according to Mayor Najwa Massad.  “Many were drawn to Mankato because it’s a vibrant, attractive, and economically stable community,” she said.

Here are the finalists:

Susan Arntz
City Administrator of Waconia, population 13,100, since 2001.

Arntz has previously served as assistant city manager in New Brighton, and assistant administrator/economic development coordinator in Chaska.

George Lahanas
City Manager of East Lansing, Michigan, population 49,000, since January 2012.

Lahanas began his career with East Lansing in 1999 as a labor relations specialist and has also served as the city’s human resources director. He was deputy city manager in East Lansing before becoming city manager.

Daniel Ortiz-Hernandez
City Manager, City of Wasco, California, population 29,000, since September 2018.

Hernandez previously served as the city manager of Webster City, Iowa, and was the city administrator of Kimball, Nebraska. He was also a management analyst in Casa Grande, Arizona.

John Presecott
City Manager of Vermillion, South Dakota, population 15,000, since 2005.

Prescott began his career in Burnsville, and previously served as assistant to the city manager in Kearney, Nebraska.

There were 44 initial applicants for the city manager position, narrowed down to eleven.  The Mankato City Council hired the Mercer Group to assist with a national candidate search.  A sub-committee of the city council, including the mayor, and the Mercer Group selected the final four candidates.

The finalists are expected to visit Mankato on Thursday, September 24, and Friday, September 25.  The next steps of the interview process are currently being finalized, according to a release from the city.