MUSKEGON, Mich. — The search for a new Muskegon city manager continues as the city commission narrows down the pool to two candidates — both with strong ties to West Michigan.
"It is certainly, yes, a plus or positive that they have a strong attachment and understanding in our community," Mayor Ken Johnson says. "It's not something to easily learn. It takes time to learn the city and citizenry."
The four candidates who were removed from consideration all recently worked out of state.
Leighann Mikesell and Jonathan Seyferth are the remaining candidates being considered.
Mikesell has been interim city manager for several months since Frank Peterson stepped down. She served as deputy city manager since last summer, and she has held multiple city positions since 2017.
Seyferth has been the city manager in Gaines Township since 2021. He worked for the city of Coopersville for six years, three of those as city manager.
Before that, he was executive director of Downtown Muskegon Now. He also worked as business development manager for two years.
"In his words, this is his dream job, if he could come back to the city and be our city manager," Mayor Johnson says.
The city interviewed six candidates forwarded to them by the Michigan Municipal League last Friday. The commission went into the weekend by eliminating two candidates. and they did the same at a special meeting on Tuesday.
Mayor Johnson says these decisions were made by trying to choose a good fit to lead the city.
A date for follow-up interviews with Mikesell and Seyferth has yet to be determined. The city commission will decide on when to interview the final two candidates at their general session meeting.
"They both have great qualities and experience," Mayor Johnson says. "It's a real challenging decision to decide who's going to lead our city going forward, and it's an incredibly important decision. It's probably the most important decision the commission will make."
The community is invited to share their input and impressions with the commission, as well as submit questions via email to ask the two candidates.
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