By: Sarah Wright | Troy Times | Published December 3, 2024
TROY — Frank Nastasi has been unanimously selected as Troy’s city manager by the Troy City Council at its Nov. 25 meeting.
“Frank (Nastasi) has a long history with Troy and has continually demonstrated the type of relational leadership that we know will serve our City best,” Troy Mayor Ethan Baker said in a press release.
“A successful City Manager must have the respect of our valuable City employees, must have a good sense of our residents’ and business owners’ needs, demonstrating the ability to communicate and relate to our diverse population, and finally, must work well with City Council, executing our directives in an efficient and ethical manner, and also providing Council with regular information and guidance. There is no doubt Frank will live up to these standards and be a fantastic City Manager,” Baker said.
Previously, after Mark Miller retired from the city manager position and stepped down in May, Troy Deputy City Manager Robert Bruner was selected to serve as city manager during a council meeting in April. However, after issues with the negotiation of his employment agreement, Bruner has remained deputy city manager.
In September 2024, Nastasi, who was Troy’s police chief at the time, was unanimously appointed by the City Council to temporarily serve as city manager while officials searched for someone to fill the position permanently. During this time, Troy police Capt. Joshua Jones served as acting police chief.
Troy’s city manager search was led by Jaymes Vettraino, of MGT (formerly GovHR USA). During this process, community stakeholders and city staff were invited to meet the three finalists and provide feedback to members of the City Council. The City Council also publicly interviewed all three finalists on Nov. 16.
As the city searched for a permanent candidate to fill the manager position, they came down to three finalists, which included Nastasi, Pontiac Deputy City Manager Khalfani Stephens and Huntington Woods City Manager Chris Wilson.
During the Nov. 25 meeting, the City Council members spoke positively about the attributes of each of the candidates but ultimately selected Nastasi for the role.
Baker noted that Nastasi’s ability to work with City Council members and employees as well as Troy community members was a large factor in considering his selection for the role.
“I feel comfortable saying tonight that more has been done in the past two months in response to what City Council has asked and the needs we face than was in the five years prior, and I am excited that we are now where I think the issues that are facing our city can be addressed in a timely fashion, in an ethical fashion, in a responsive fashion to what the policy-setting body up here is pushing for,” Baker said.
Troy City Council member Rebecca Chamberlain-Creanga spoke on her positive experiences working with Nastasi and Stephens on the Board of Trustees of the Michigan Municipal League as well as how Wilson impressed her during the interview process. But her consideration of Troy’s pressing issues, specifically with public safety, influenced her decision.
“You have to pan out and think of both contexts — what are the most pressing challenges that we’re facing as a city, and also the input of our staff — because this is the most direct person who is going to engage our staff when it comes to context,” Chamberlain-Creanga said.
“We heard it tonight. We didn’t go into detail, but if you’ve been looking at our agendas, our next big issue we have to address is one of public safety. … I recognize that Frank does have that experience when it comes to tackling some of those public safety issues we have to address,” Chamberlain-Creanga said.
Troy City Council member Hirak Chanda expressed similar sentiments with the three candidates.
“I just briefly want to mention Chris Wilson ... actually impressed me in the interview process quite a bit,” Chanda said. “He has roots in the city. You know he appeared to be very comfortable with the interview process, probably because he’s been a city council (member) or city manager.
“So, second was Khalfani Stephens. I was very impressed with his resume. He has done wonderful things in Pontiac and in Flint. ... We have a lot of pressing needs that the city is facing including the library, the EMS and Frank impressed me tremendously. ... He’s already doing a real good job as a short-term city manager.”
Now that Nastasi has been selected to serve as city manager, his contract to serve in the position will be approved at a future City Council meeting. The position was posted with a salary range of $177,500-$240,000.
“I’m honored to serve as City Manager and look forward to building on Troy’s strong foundation,” Nastasi said in a press release. “My focus will be on enhancing collaboration, driving community-focused initiatives and ensuring we continue to deliver exceptional service to our residents and businesses.”
In terms of filling the police chief role, according to Michigan Civil Service regulations, an acting police chief may be appointed whenever there are urgent reasons to fill a vacancy, but this temporary appointment cannot continue for more than three months.
With the three-month deadline to permanently fill the police chief position approaching on Dec. 26, the city posted the position and continues to work through the recruitment process to fill the role.
For more information, visit troymi.gov.