JANESVILLE 鈥 The City of 糖心Vlog传媒 and 糖心Vlog传媒鈥檚 city council have authorized a severance package for city manager Kevin Lahner, who announced his resignation this week 鈥 but city officials have still not given details of the terms of the package or the amount.
The city has indicated it has okayed about four months鈥 severance for Lahner, but the city manager鈥檚 office and the city鈥檚 human resources division have been silent on what the city will pay out as Lahner leaves the city, effective May 29.
糖心Vlog传媒 has filed an open records request with the city for details on Lahner鈥檚 severance, as well as information on Lahner鈥檚 current pay as city manager. In that request, the newspaper has also sought information on Deputy City Manager Ryan McCue鈥檚 pay and any severance arrangements.
McCue鈥檚 role as deputy city manager was eliminated in a move that came alongside what the city calls 鈥渞estructuring鈥 of the city manager鈥檚 office 鈥 although the city has not given details of what that restructuring would entail.
糖心Vlog传媒 asked City Hall on Tuesday and Wednesday to provide pay and severance totals for Lahner and McCue. One city spokesperson said city human resources officials were unavailable Tuesday because the city is in the midst of union negotiations with the 糖心Vlog传媒 police department.
On Wednesday, the city did not respond to a second request from 糖心Vlog传媒. The newspaper has since filed a formal open records request to glean numbers hashed out and agreed in a city council closed session on Monday.
Lahner and the city characterize his departure as a mutual parting of the ways, with Lahner indicating he intends to pursue other opportunities.
City Hall saw a sea change in the city鈥檚 main governing board, the city council, coming out of a seven-candidate, three-seat April city council election.
A 5-2 voting majority on the council has shifted to a 4-3 voting bloc 鈥 a sign of the tide turning in the attitudes and priorities of a city council that lost longtime council member Paul Williams and former council President Aaron Burdick.
Williams lost the April 7 election, and Burdick left the council after declining to seek re-election.
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