Elgin city manager a finalist for Iowa job

Elgin City Manager Sean Stegall is among four finalists for the job of city manager in Des Moines, Iowa.

Stegall, 41, said he and his family will fly out Sunday for his in-person interview in Des Moines, a city he's visited several times in the past. He was tapped for the job by a recruiting firm, he said.

"Recruiters are constantly calling, pitching jobs," he said. "Des Moines happened to be one that was kind of special."

Elgin Mayor David Kaptain said it's OK for city employees to seek other opportunities.

"That's what city managers do," Kaptain said. "I think people always go out and explore their options, and that's what he's doing."

Still, the timing for Elgin wouldn't be ideal because Elgin CFO Colleen Lavery resigned last month, Kaptain said.

Lavery left because of the city's residency requirements, for which she had received a one-time, five-year exemption when she was hired in 2010.

Elgin lost its city manager and CFO in a short period before Stegall became city manager in 2009, Kaptain said. Stegall was hired as assistant city manager in 2000.

"We have to be careful there, if that is the case, but I think we've shown in the past that we have enough people in the pipeline to help us continue (running the city)," Kaptain said.

The other three candidates in Des Moines are Jane Shang, deputy city manager of El Paso, Texas; Steve Arbo, city manager of Lee's Summit, Mo.; and Stanley Earley, deputy city manager of Dayton, Ohio, according to The Des Moines Register. The finalists were announced Thursday, the paper said.

Des Moines has about 208,000 residents, while Elgin's population is about 110,000, according to U.S. Census Data.

Earlier this year, Stegall said, he was a finalist for the city manager position in Bellevue, Washington, but withdrew his candidacy before the selection process was over. He currently is paid about $187,000.