Jerry Czarnecki, Hastings City Manager, is stepping down. He submitted his letter of resignation to Mayor Dave Tossava last week, effective May 7th, a move that came as both a surprise and a disappointment to many City Council members who felt Czarnecki was doing a fine job.
Czarnecki has been City Manager since 2019. Prior to that, he served as Hastings Economic Development Director beginning in 2017, then moved into the role of City Clerk/Treasurer. Before working in city government, Czarnecki was a teacher for 25 years.
While he has enjoyed his time working for the city Jerry said he is “just ready to move on to something else”. He made his decision after contemplating what would be best for the city, his family, and himself.
A special meeting of the City Council was held Monday to begin the search process. The council approved spending up to $16,000 to contract with the Michigan Municipal League for an executive search for Czarnecki’s replacement. Council will review a draft contract for the Municipal League services at their Feb. 22nd meeting.
With a three month resignation window, City Council will need to find a new city manager by the time Czarnecki leaves May 7th, or, could decide to hire an interim city manager which would mean Czarnecki could leave sooner.
