By Per Peterson
A list of three finalists for Tracy’s city administrator position were announced Friday.
The Tracy City Council set interview times for 5-7 p.m. on Oct. 4. The candidates are:
Jeff Carpenter
Carpenter took over as Tracy EDA director in 2017 and continues to hold that position. During that time, besides his day-to-day activities of economic development, Carpenter has worked with the city administrator to help move the city forward; maintained an open line of communication between the EDA board and the city council; managed the EDA’s loan and payback programs and EDA-owned apartments with basic upkeep and residential occupancy; analyzed rural issues such as a decreasing and aging population, health care, assisted living, housing and basic growth of the city; addressed amenity needs for the city while working to attract businesses to the city.
Before becoming Tracy’s EDA director, Carpenter spent a little more than 11 years as a zone manager with The Schwan Food Co. Prior to that, he was a sales manger with Schwan for just short of 13 years.
Carpenter earned his Bachelor of Arts with an emphasis on sociology from Southwest Minnesota State University. He attended high school in Lake Benton.
Kelly J. Groskurth
Groskurth is currently the city manager/city clerk for the City of Treynor, IA. There, he is responsible for supervision of all City departments, personnel policies, maintenance of all personnel records, interviewing and recommendation of new hires. He also is charged with the implementation of council policies, ordinances, resolutions and the supervision of departments, as well as the financial statements, budget, payroll, accounts receivables, bank accounts, accounts payable and the annual Fiscal Year End report and the day-to-day operations of the city. He also established an Urban Renewal Area and is involved in human resource management, planning and zoning administration and records management.
Groskurth was also a city clerk in Underwood, IA, from May 2005-July 2015, and before that was city clerk in Oakland, IA, for three years.
He earned his Bachelor of Arts at Tarkio College in Tarkio, MO, with an emphasis on business administration/management.
Groskurth lists a career highlight of developing a Tax Increment Finance agreement with Link’s Snacks (now Jack Links) and its decision to locate in Underwood. He said the subsequent 80/20 annexation created a larger taxable valuation for the City of Underwood.
Michael Quinlivan
Quinlivan, a former Tracy resident and graduate of Tracy Area High School, is a financial crime analyst with Wells Fargo in Sioux Falls, SD. His duties include inspecting and identifying fraud within clients’ accounts and remedying fraud by reimbursing clients. Prior to joining Wells Fargo, he was a sales specialist with American Family Insurance in Brandon, SD, and also worked at Citibank and St. Moritz Building Services Inc.
Quinlivan received his Masters of Public Administration from the University of South Dakota in Vermillion, SD, in 2012 and his Bachelor of Arts degree (double major in economics and government/international affairs) from Augustana College in Sioux Falls in 2004. He studied abroad in England, Ireland and Northern Ireland in January 2003.
In his application for the city administrator post, Quinlivan wrote that for many years he has had direct contact with a long-time Minnesota economic development specialist who has helped draft state-level legislation and possesses a deep knowledge of rural development and the needs of small-town Minnesota.