By STEPHANIE FARLEY

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sfarley@gctelegram.com

One of the few things Matt Allen would've changed about his interview Tuesday for the Garden City manager spot was the way he was dressed.

Dressed in gym clothes after having worked out, Allen entered the commission room and answered the questions asked of him by city commissioners.

The special meeting of the Garden City Commission was called to discuss the city manager search with Marla Flentje of Austin Peters Group, who's helped consult with the city on the search, and a 12-member city manager selection committee.

Allen, who has been the interim city manager since Bob Halloran retired from the position on March 1, hadn't planned on being called in for an interview with the commission. And he didn't plan on walking out of the city administrative building with a job offer, either.

But that's what he got.

Commissioners went into closed session shortly after 11 a.m. and called Allen in for an interview. At about 12:53 p.m., after excusing Allen and talking for another 10 or so minutes, commissioners came out of the session announcing they were extending a conditional offer to Allen.

"It's more reward than I ever really expected," said Allen, a Garden City native and graduate of Garden City High School.

While the offer's contingent upon background checks and a contract to be negotiated, it seemingly ends the nationwide search to fill the spot. City Communications Specialist Tanner Lucas foresees negotiations for salary and benefits for Allen to start at the commission's next meeting, which is Tuesday.

Commissioners have designated Mayor David Crase to negotiate the terms of Allen's employment.

The search committee reviewed 10 applicants -- including Allen and nine from out of state -- who met the requirements, which included a minimum of five years experience as a local government manager or assistant manager in a Midwest community; a bachelor's degree in public or business administration, or related field, from an accredited university; and experience in managing cultural and economic diversity.

Preferred qualifications included, among others, eight years "progressively advanced" experience as city manager or assistant manager; experience in managing interlocal partnerships; and experience in obtaining external funding for city projects and programs.

From the 10, the committee narrowed it to three that members ultimately recommended to the commission.

"The search committee highly recommended Matt, and he is familiar with the organization and has experience," Crase stated. "He had a clear advantage over other candidates. Matt is a great fit for our community, and that's evidenced by the overwhelming support given to him by the members of the search committee and the city commission."

Committee members included Carol Ballantyne, Tim Cruz, Dick Fankhauser, George Hopkins, Gail Lee, Steve Martinez, Dennis Mesa, Delores Morales, Steve O'Brate, Sister Janice Thome, Dana Woodbury and Mitch Young.

Why wait

When approached by community members, Commissioner Nancy Harness said the general consensus on the search seemed to be, "You've got the best guy (in Allen). What's the problem?"

But, according to Harness, the way to show the city's got the best guy for the job is by looking at who else is out there. And on Tuesday, Harness said, commissioners reviewed the other two applicants and thought, based on the review, they knew what they wanted.

"He's committed to the community," Harness said, adding Allen wants to see it prosper, keep current residents here and gain new ones and also improve the quality of life in the community, which falls in line with what's desired by the commission.

Harness said Allen has both the heart and head for the job, having the experience needed to be city manager and also a strong, vested interest in the community.

The commission still wanted to hear how Allen answered some of the questions they had, including the type of management style he uses and what areas/issues he plans to address in the city. They asked 15 to 20 questions, Harness said, adding his replies "reconfirmed what we were thinking. ... It was time well spent."

Commissioner J.R. Behan said he didn't think the city could find a better applicant than Allen and that it made no sense wasting time and money to bring other applicants to town for an interview.

Behan believes that even though Allen's familiar with the community, he'll bring new, fresh ideas to the table for developing the city, staff and commission. Behan made the motion for the commission to extend the offer, saying he's convinced they're making the right move.

"You can't go wrong doing right," Behan said.

Commissioner Reynaldo Mesa said Allen "rose to the top" of the candidates, and the process worked as it was supposed to with the committee recommending the best applicants for the job. He sees Allen as helping the city through the transition -- economically and in other ways -- he sees the city currently in.

"He's got a good handle on things," Mesa said, adding Allen works well with city staff and commissioners, as well as all sectors, including Garden City Community College, Finney County and USD 457.

Allen has about 11 years experience in the field of local government administration, serving as Garden City's assistant city manager since March 2002; city administrator for Oakley for two years; assistant to the city manager in Joplin, Mo., from 1997 to March 2000; and then internships before that with the cities of Lenexa and Salina and Saline County.

Allen said he became involved in city management with the goal of eventually being a city manager. But while his friends and fellow classmates were seeking internships and higher-profile jobs in bigger cities, he said, he chose to educate and surround himself in issues and mentors in western Kansas.

He said he's been "blessed" to have had opportunities and experiences that give him a good background to become city manager for Garden City. He left Oakley in March 2002, saying the Garden City job allowed him to stay in western Kansas, be closer to family, give his children a chance to know their grandparents and position himself to either be city manager here or elsewhere.

While here, Allen said, it became apparent that opportunity might happen in Garden City. He said he and his wife decided that if the opportunity opened up, he would pursue it, adding that if it didn't work out, it'd be all right.

But at this point, Allen said Tuesday night, it appears it might work.

And the fact it's happening here, in Garden City, is "icing on the cake," he said.