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Ketchum's ability to provide efficient and quality service and asset management for its citizens in a fiscally responsible manner depends upon organizational excellence. Such excellence is based on the skills and capabilities of the city's team, strategic planning and collaboration across its departments and with the public. The better the team is, the better the service will be.

Now that our new city administrator, Suzanne Frick, is here and the planning department is fully staffed, it is time to invest in an organizational development session with city staff to further enhance the performance that we provide the public. With the City Council's approval, we will be working with Diann Craven of ClearDirection, LLC to strengthen the city team serving you.

We want to continue to build a culture of respect and trust. We know that sharing information increases participation and transparency, and is an important ingredient in the culture we want to maintain.

The city of Ketchum has 55 full-time employees. The median income of these employees is $55,079. City services include water and wastewater, streets, planning and building, parks and recreation, fire and ambulance, police, clerk and treasury, and administration. The professionals who manage these city resources work hard to provide a responsive and quality public service that meets your needs, and we all appreciate their efforts.

Michael Austin

With the selection of two new members of the city planning and building department, Ketchum will have a high-functioning team to support economic development.

"We will be in a position to provide fantastic customer service, process applications faster, update the zoning code making it easier to understand and facilitate the development planning process to help us become a more vibrant and productive city," Mayor Nina Jonas said.

The appointment of Micah Austin, currently Hailey community development director, as Ketchum's director of planning and building will go before the City Council for approval Monday. Austin joined the Hailey staff in 2012 after working as community development director in Jerome for nearly four years. Click here to read the press release.

"His experience with community development, urban renewal agencies and tax increment financing, as well as his knowledge of Blaine County, will be a tremendous asset," Jonas said.

Morgan Brim will become the department's second senior planner. Brim, who grew up in Nevada, has worked in Virginia for the past seven years and is looking forward to returning to the West. Brim brings skills in code writing, enforcement and processing of land-use applications. He will join Senior Planner Rebecca Bundy, trained as an architect, who has spearheaded the city's development of "green" building codes and its focus on renewable energy sources.

Linda Haavik, who retired as Blaine County planning director in 2006, is the city's interim planning and building director until Austin arrives in January. Haavik worked in the Ketchum planning department for 14 years before taking the county job.

Building Inspector Jim Lynch works for Ketchum under a contract with the State Division of Building Safety. This is cost-efficient and gives Ketchum access to a larger and specialized staff for projects such as the upcoming construction of two hotels.

Rounding out the staff are Rachel Martin, planning technician, and Marta Thompson, fire and building assistant. 

A substantial edit and update of the zoning code is a major focus for the department in the coming year. "Our goal is to make the codes more consistent, more predictable and easier to understand, as well as to meet today's standards," Bundy said.