Council and new CB manager sign employment contract

A house, a car and a townie

by Mark Reaman

The Crested Butte Town Council and Dara MacDonald have agreed to a town manager contract. MacDonald officially signed the contract last week.

Under the agreement, MacDonald will be considered an “at will” employee, which basically means she can be fired at any time, for any reason, by the council. If that does happen, she will be entitled to three months of salary and benefits.

MacDonald’s initial salary is set at $110,000 plus benefits. Those benefits include a town-owned house to live in during her time as town manager. That is valued at $18,000 per year. She and her dependent will also receive excellent health insurance benefits. As part of the job she will get a vehicle to use for town business, along with a townie that won’t cost more than $400. She will also start out with five days of paid vacation and sick leave.

The contract between the town and MacDonald makes it clear that it is not a 40-hour per week job. She is expected to be available during normal business hours as well as during public meetings. She is also aware that “the town manager must devote a substantial amount of time to the business of town outside normal office hours.”

Also as part of the contract, MacDonald agreed to keep learning on the job and “actively and diligently participate in mentoring activities as identified by the Town Council…”

MacDonald said that aspect of the job is something she is looking forward to. “Participating in mentoring means there are some great resources out there around Colorado to keep learning from–both at conferences and from individuals,” she explained. “I want the opportunity to actively engage some of those resources and the Town Council supports and encourages those efforts. I want to continue building a professional support network so that I can keep improving the knowledge base and quality of leadership I bring to the community.”

MacDonald officially started the position on September 19.