JohnA: Look Within For Next Chief

JohnA (RE: Where should CdA look for next police chief? ) The city went outside when Dave Scates retired, just like they did with each of the new department hires under the Boy Mayor. That didn’t work then and I’m not sure it will now. The city wasted a lot of time and effort with their search when in the end they had the best candidate in house in Wendy Carpenter. It was the same with the city administrator (they went through two before they realized the best one was in house) and fire chief (ditto) so I would expect them to look in house first before they go nationwide. It’s not always glamorous to promote from within but it sure sends a great message to the troops that the administration respects all of its employees and the sacrifices they make on behalf of their city.

DFO: I tend to agree with JohnA. Someone with Big City ways may not understand the culture of a place like Coeur d’Alene. I’d look within the department and then maybe around the state and region. Wayne Longo was a great pickup from the ISP. If the Widmyer administration can’t find anyone locally/regionally to fill the job, then expand the search. Thoughts?