Former Battle Ground City Manager David Mercier will be Vancouver’s next second-in-command.
The new assistant city manager actually was Vancouver City Manager Eric Holmes’ boss, when Holmes was the planning manager and assistant city manager in Battle Ground in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Holmes announced his selection to the city council and city staff this afternoon.
“Dave has extensive experience leading local governments in a changing environment,” Holmes said in a news release. “That experience, and his collaborative and engaging leadership style, came through in the feedback from city staff and community members involved in the selection process. I feel fortunate to have someone with Dave’s experience join the city’s management team.”
Mercier served as the first city manager for the city of Spokane Valley, from when it incorporated in 2003 until early 2010. The latest city to incorporate in Washington, Spokane Valley also represents one of the largest new cities ever formed in the United States. Mercier was also Battle Ground’s first city manager, serving from 1997 to 2001.
“The city of Vancouver has a reputation of being an efficient, effective and progressive organization,” Mercier said. “I’m excited to join Eric and the city’s leadership team, and I look forward to working with city staff, the city council and the community.”
Mercier will report directly to Holmes and will oversee the city’s Human Resources, Information Technology and General Services departments. He will also work closely with the city’s senior managers on a daily basis and direct interdisciplinary teams responsible for a variety of organizational initiatives. Mercier’s first day on the job will be March 31.
He was pulled from a pool of four finalists, including, Elizabeth Gotelli, Vancouver’s Human Resources director; Mark Hoppen, a consultant and former Puyallup Public Works director and former Gig Harbor city manager; and Jennifer Phillips, a consultant and former assistant city manager of Santa Monica, Calif.
Unlike several other high-profile jobs, Vancouver did not hire an outside consultant to conduct this job search, as it did with the recent hire of former Vancouver Assistant Fire Chief Joe Molina to take the fire chief position, and in its hiring of Holmes as city manager. Vancouver is still in the process of hiring a public information officer and a volunteer coordinator.
Prior to coming to Southwest Washington, Mercier spent six years as town manager in Fairfield, Maine, and another six years as town manager in Baileyville, Maine. He also was assistant town manager in Houlton, Maine, for 11/2 years.
He holds a master’s degree in educational administration, University of Maine, and has a wife, Jane, and three grown sons. He told The Columbian in 1997 his hobbies include golf, hiking, reading and travel.
Mercier fills a position left vacant by Holmes, who was appointed city manager Nov. 1. Holmes’ salary in that position was $122,868. Mercier’s contract information was not immediately available Monday afternoon. Before that, Betsy Williams was the assistant city manager until her retirement in 2010.
