Lawton City Council launches process to replace city clerk

City Council members have begun looking for a new city clerk.

Long-time Lawton City Clerk Traci Hushbeck has formally submitted her plan to retire, starting the clock ticking on her departure from the City of Lawton after serving as city clerk since 2005. Hushbeck is one of four city administrators who work for the City Council, meaning that body is responsible for selecting a replacement.

Hushbeck said Thursday that while her 21-year tenure with the City of Lawton will end in mid- to late-March 2024, her last day as city clerk will be Oct. 27, when she will begin her terminal leave. That means city officials must move fast if they want the new city clerk to overlap with the existing one.

Council members accepted a recommendation from Interim City Manager John Ratliff that began advertising the city clerk’s position on Thursday. The post will be advertised through Sept. 25, with Ratliff saying he would be ready to discuss applicants with the City Council at its Sept. 26 meeting. Council members expect to select an applicant quickly, and Ratliff said that would give city administrators “most of October to do the transition for a new individual.”

Ratliff’s recommendation also set a salary range of $85,000 to $95,000 per year, with the intent of advertising to both existing city employees and qualified individuals who work outside the city. Ward 8 Councilman Randy Warren, the council’s longest-tenured council member, said while he is interested in external candidates, the city must emphasize that candidates must be familiar with the Oklahoma laws “that govern what we do.” Warren said there are many differences in laws between Oklahoma and Texas, for example, and candidates must be familiar with those that apply to municipal governments in Oklahoma.

In addition to providing centralized clerking activities and responsibility for the city’s permanent records, the City Clerk’s Office is the one that works most closely with city attorneys on things such as the Open Meetings/Open Records Act. It also is responsible for keeping records and minutes of the City Council and its related bodies.

Ratliff said the salary range to be identified in the advertisement falls within the average range of Lawton’s peer cities. Surveys of those peer cities show salaries for city clerk range from a minimum of $77,025 to a maximum of $116,040, with an average of $96,533.

Council members said it is important to find a candidate who can fill Hushbeck’s shoes.

“In-house expertise is important,” said Ward 5 Councilman Allan Hampton, of the wealth of knowledge Hushbeck brought to the table because of her long service to the City of Lawton.

The search is one of two administrators that City Council members are handling.

The council also is searching for a permanent city manager to replace former City Manager Michel Cleghorn, who resigned in March. Ratliff, the city attorney, was named interim city manager until a permanent manager is named. Thursday’s council meeting included an executive session with Strategic Government Resources, which is coordinating the search for a city manager and was expected to present its analysis and recommendations to the council. Council members took no action in open session.