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	The Ypsilanti Courier A Heritage Newspaper Weekly Publication

Assistant manager lands new job

Bruner will develop transition plan before leaving

By Dan DuChene, Staff Writer

PUBLISHED: January 4, 2007

Assistant City Manager Robert Bruner is planning to move to Ferndale to become the city's manager.

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Ferndale City Council unanimously offered Bruner the position after his interview on Dec. 27. Bruner, 30, said the interview with city council lasted about an hour.

Ferndale's mayor and city attorney discussed the terms of Bruner's contract on Tuesday. It is expected that Ferndale will approve the contract at its next city council meeting on Monday.

Bruner said he doesn't know when his last day in Ypsilanti will be, or when he starts in Ferndale. He said he won't be leaving until at least next month.

"I can't leave Ypsilanti until I've developed and implemented a transition plan," Bruner said.

Before leaving, Bruner said he wants to hammer out some things he was working on before Ferndale offered him the position. Before going to Ferndale, Bruner wants to continue his work on goal-setting with Ypsilanti City Council, reviewing the city's non-union job classification and compensation plan, establish an internship program, finalize Rebecca Bintz as the city's incoming clerk, documenting and organizing his other work and working to find his replacement.

Starting in 2001, Bruner has been Ypsilanti's Assistant City Manager for more than five years. Before coming to Ypsilanti, Bruner was the assistant to the city manager in Oak Park.

"Working in Ypsilanti has been a fantastic experience," Bruner said. "I'm kind of sorry I wasn't able to stay a little bit longer. But, [Ferndale] was an opportunity I couldn't pass up."

Bruner was originally Ferndale's third pick in the first round of interviews held on Dec. 16, with Wayne O'Neal and Fred Zorn advancing for second interviews the following day. However, Zorn pulled his hat out of the running on Dec. 18. This is when Ferndale invited Bruner back for a second interview.

"People were concerned because he's so young," said Robert Porter, Ferndale's mayor.

Porter said it was Bruner's youth that may have helped him attain the position.

"Ferndale's a pretty progressive town," Porter said. "Bob is young. He's got the energy to do that."

Because of the state's lag in the real-estate market, Bruner owns a home in Ferndale, and plans to move there when he starts work in the city. He said he will put his home in Ypsilanti up for sale when his contract is approved by council.

Bruner currently makes $64,320 a year in Ypsilanti. The City Manager Position in Ferndale was posted with a salary of $100,000 or more.