City Council votes to appoint Nathan Olson as permanent Lemoore City Manager

By Ed Martin, Editor
City Manager Nathan Olson
City Manager Nathan Olson

Lemoore’s City Council voted 3-2 Tuesday night to make it official. Despite some blowback from members of the Lemoore Volunteer Fire Department, councilmembers decided to remove the ‘interim” from Nathan Olson’s title and appoint him as the permanent city manager.

Olson has been serving on an interim basis for about a year before councilmembers acted Tuesday night.

Lemoore Mayor Ray Madrigal, Councilmember Dave Brown, and Councilmember Jeff Chedester voted for Olson’s appointment, while Holly Blair and Eddie Neal voted no. Blair, while praising Olson’s work ethic suggested the council table the matter until the issue with the fire department was rectified.

“I asked him a lot of questions and (presented) a lot of scenarios,” said Blair.  She said he had good character but suggested that promoting from with-in “creates bad optics.” She had some concerns about the fire department’s lack of enthusiasm for Olson. “If our fire department’s not happy, then our city’s not happy.”

It’s unclear what’s at the heart of the volunteer fire department’s angst is with Olson. Speaking on behalf of the firefighters, former volunteer Ron Allvin, a retired educator and city councilmember said: “The Lemoore Volunteer Fire Department has enjoyed almost 100 years of amicable and professional relationships with the city, saving taxpayers and homeowners millions of dollars. They have achieved this professionally while earning the respect of the community and producing a Class II ISO rating.”

According to Allvin, that highly valued rating is the envy of surrounding paid fire departments and communities. “A class II is rare, even with paid fire departments.”

He said that lately the fire department had been embroiled in a complicated relationship with the interim city manager. “Recently, administrators have become adversarial,” said Allvin.

He said that the former city manager (Andi Welsh) began pursuing a paid fire department, and firefighters failed to fathom why.

“It’s the highest form of public service, above all,” said Allvin.

Olson received high praise from city department heads, business leaders, and members of the community, including Lemoore Chief of Police Darrel Smith who praised Olson’s work ethic.  

“I’ve had the opportunity to work with some very good city managers, and some city managers I would never want to work with again,” recalled Smith, who served briefly as the city’s manager following the dismissal of former manager Welsh.  “The dynamics of a culture and an organization are the most important thing, and people are also equally important. A team-oriented body that allows department heads to do their job is very rewarding,” he said. “I am very proud to serve with a leader like Nathan. He cares about the community (and) the issues and challenges we have in our city. He truly loves doing what he does, and that’s special.”

Lemoore’s Community Services Director Jason Glick echoed Smith’s remarks. “We don’t always agree. We have a discussion. The door never shuts (with Olson),” he said. “He has an open-door policy, outgoing, friendly and has a can-do attitude. Those are the things I see in Mr. Olson.”

Leprino Foods Dan Williamson said dealing with Olson has always been positive. “In my frequent dealings with Nathan, I found him to act in a professional manner. He is a good, fair, and strong representative for the City of Lemoore. We have appreciated the spirit of cooperation he has brought to our dealings with the city.”

Madrigal attempted to deflect criticism from the fire department. “I’m sorry the fire department feels the way they do,” he said.  “Unfortunately, Nathan has been put in a very difficult position. He’s acted upon our guidance. He’s been the messenger, so, unfortunately, he’s gotten that label from you.

“He has proven to me that he’s a problem solver,” continued Madrigal. “He comes from the private sector, and to me, that’s a bonus. Our objective is to keep this fire department – and Nathan knows that. His work ethic is second to none.”

Chedester was equally expressive. “The overwhelming majority is very positive about Nate. There are so many more positives than there are negatives. The people who work with him say he’s a good leader.”

In other actions Tuesday night, council members gave the go-ahead to city staff to proceed with implementing new voting districts in Lemoore. Councilmembers narrowed the selection process to just two maps, finally selecting map 104, which they say is probably the best pick for Lemoore. It equally divides the city into five districts with at least one area with a 49 percent Latino concentration.

As currently projected, each district has a councilmember. The public can see Map 104 and the other districts at www.drawlemoore.org.

The first district elections will be held this November in the districts where Mayor Madrigal and Councilmember Chedester reside.

 

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