Traverse City Record-Eagle

Archive: Friday

November 27, 2009

Editorial: New TC manager gets raves

After just one year on the job Traverse City manager Ben Bifoss has transformed the position -- and his bosses couldn't be happier.

In a recent job review, community members and city commissioners were effusive about Bifoss' first year, both for what he has accomplished and the way he goes about his business.

"He's practical. He's smart. He has strong analytical abilities to take a situation and turn it around in his hands and look at all the angles," said Mayor Chris Bzdok. The mayor gave Bifoss a grade somewhere between an A and A+.

Wow.

Some of the comments reflect -- a bit obliquely, perhaps -- just how different Bifoss is from his predecessor, Richard Lewis, who was on the job for 17 years. A lot of people, including some commissioners, had long said Lewis was as much a politician as a city manager. Some thought he also had too strong a hand in making city policy, not just carrying out the will of the commission.

In terms of their demeanor, Bifoss could hardly be more different than Lewis, who shook a lot of hands and slapped a lot of backs in his time. By contrast, Bifoss tends to listen more than talk.

Nathan Elkins, a Downtown Development Authority board member and chairman of the Parks and Recreation Commission, said Bifoss is a good listener. "The thing I like most about him is he sits quietly, listens and takes it all in," Elkins said.

Bifoss has been praised for his work on the city budget and negotiating employee contracts with various city unions. He has also overseen a reduction in the total number of city employees.

Bifoss was also given high grades for being responsive to the commission.

"Getting questions answered has been really easy and I feel like I'm better informed," Commissioner Barbara Budros said.

The latest reveiw was just more of what commissioners had to say in July, when they gave Bifoss an 8 percent raise and a six-month severance package after just eight months on the job, a raise Bifoss had negotiated before he was even on the payroll. He now makes $98,000 a year, the same as Lewis got after 17 years.

As the city moves to deal with some of the recommendations from the Citizens Operational and Financial Analysis Committee -- which seems inevitable with the election of two former COFAC members earlier this month -- Bifoss' analytical and negotiating skills will be put to the test.

Given the results from his first year, city residents can be confident in the outcome.

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