LAKE STEVENS — Former city administrator Jan Berg is receiving more than $100,000 from the city after her departure last month.
She resigned Nov. 15 after 18 years with the city. The City Council approved the resignation in October.
Berg is receiving severance pay totaling six months of her salary and benefits, according to a separation agreement between her and the city. The $74,970 total is split up into six monthly payments of $12,495. The first payment was scheduled for Dec. 1.
Berg also received $30,144.43 on the day of her resignation, according to the agreement. That total is not part of any prior agreement between Berg and the city or any existing employee benefit plan provided by the city. It includes accrued vacation time. Berg was allowed to cash out up to 240 hours per the agreement.
The paperwork was obtained by The Herald under public records laws.
By signing the document, Berg promised not to pursue legal claims against the city unless it is specifically to challenge the separation agreement, claim workers compensation benefits or address something that happened after the agreement became final. Berg and city officials also agreed not to make any “derogatory or disparaging statements” about each other. That means Berg is not to speak ill of the city or its employees and they are not to speak ill of Berg “in any discussion with third parties, in a press release, or in any other similar forum or manner,” except if they are “making truthful statements in a legal or administrative proceeding.”
Berg started working for Lake Stevens as the city’s finance director in 1997. She became city administrator in 2007. She oversaw the city during the recession and through a huge spike in population as leaders annexed new neighborhoods around the lake. The city’s population went from roughly 6,000 to more than 30,000 people.
Berg decided “to pursue other opportunities,” according to a city news release sent in October. Berg and Mayor Vern Little declined to comment further.
Berg has been controversial for her management style, in particular in connection with the city’s police department. At least three police officers have filed lawsuits against the city accusing her of overstepping her authority in recent years. One of those lawsuits, by Cmdr. Dennis Taylor, is pending.
For now, Mary Swenson is filling in as the interim Lake Stevens city administrator. She worked for the city of Marysville for more than 30 years, 10 of them as city administrator, before retiring.
The search for a new city administrator is likely to start after Jan. 1. Little’s term as mayor is ending and he did not run for re-election. City Councilman John Spencer is set to take over as mayor in 2016. He’ll need to hire an administrator or make other arrangements, Little said in October.
Kari Bray: 425-339-3439; kbray@heraldnet.com.
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