THE RUMORS SWIRLING around City Hall and throughout Marquette that city manager Bill Vajda is resigning are just that: rumors.
Unfounded. Wrong.
That’s the word from Vajda himself.
They started when Vajda took this week off–an unscheduled vacation at home, which he says is his first actual vacation since he took the job more than five years ago. He says he’s spending time catching up with family and friends.
Others will confirm that the last few weeks have been stressful for Vajda and city officials. The budget, hospital relocation, economic development, the Smartzone, dark stores, the library, declining state revenues, among other pressing issues.
And it’s no secret that Vajda has met resistance from some members of the City Commission.
Mayor Mike Coyne confirms this but emphasizes that Vajda has the “strong support” of the “majority” of the Commission. It doesn’t take much to figure out what he means.
In Coyne’s view, this last year has been one of the most successful in Marquette’s history. The city, he says, is getting more respect from state officials than ever before. Marquette is held up as a model for the rest of the state, he’s been told.
And Vajda, Coyne says, has been an integral part of that success.
Vajda says any rumors about his impending resignation may have come from those who are less than thrilled with his performance. He doesn’t know.
Too much stress? He’s worked for the Defense Department, intelligence agencies, the IRS and NATO…The stress he experienced there is far greater than anything he’s had to deal with in Marquette.
Still, he’s got seven bosses on the City Commission he’s got to answer to daily; actually, he works for almost 22,000 bosses who reside in the city. Yeah, that’s a lot of stress.
Maybe he needs more than one vacation every five years.
You got news? Click Here to email Brian.