Williams named interim city administrator in Othello

OTHELLO — Finance Director Spencer Williams will be appointed as interim city administrator while Othello city officials look for a permanent replacement. Mayor Ken Johnson said the search is just getting started. 

“I hope it’s a quick and easy process, but we’ll know that very shortly,” Johnson said. 

Williams said his role will be to carry out the direction of the mayor and council. 

“The administrator is the executive branch, where the mayor and council are the legislative branch,” he said.  

The council and mayor determine policy, he said, and the city administrator is responsible for seeing it is carried out.  

“They supervise and coordinate all the activities of each department,” Williams said.  

Former mayor Shawn Logan also worked as city administrator; he took over the job in 2018, when then-administrator Wade Ferris resigned. Logan was defeated by Johnson in the mayoral election last November. Johnson said he was not interested in combining the two jobs.  

“I believe those two offices need to be separated,” Johnson said. 

In an earlier interview, Johnson said he thought combining the two jobs led to inadequate accountability and led to what he considered some poor decisions.  

“The mayor is supposed to oversee the administrator, but there’s no oversight for that, except for the council,” Johnson said.  

He hopes to find a qualified candidate in the Othello area, he said. 

“We have a lot of really good talent in the city,” Johnson said. 

The first council meeting of the year is scheduled for Monday, and Johnson said the city administrator position would be one of the subjects for discussion.