CHARLOTTE, Mich — Charlotte has appointed an interim city manager following the planned departure of Rob Hillard and a string of resignations that shook city leadership late last year.
- Vincent Pastue takes over as interim city manager while the council searches for a permanent replacement solution, with the selection of a hiring firm targeted for March 9.
- The leadership changes follow December resignations of the mayor and mayor pro tem after Hillard's announced departure planned for Feb 3rd.
- Outgoing manager Hillard warned the city is "in CRISIS" and needs time to resolve structural problems
Vincent Pastue, who has guided communities through similar transitions before, now leading Charlotte as the city council searches for a permanent replacement.
WATCH: New interim manager takes over Charlotte following recent leadership departures
The process is already underway, with the council selecting a firm to conduct the hiring process. Pastue said proposals are due February 24, and the council aims to select the firm by March 9.
"The committee that they have will be involved with reviewing the proposals, scheduling interviews and ultimately making a recommendation and hopefully targeting them to make a city council selection on March 9th," Pastue said.
The leadership changes follow a turbulent period for Charlotte. After Hillard announced his departure late November, both the mayor and mayor pro tem resigned in early December.
Hillards last day was Febuary 3rd.
In his outgoing recommendations to city council, Hillard wrote that "City Council Members need to acknowledge the City is in CRISIS, the City Manager needs TIME to resolve complex issues and structural problems, and City Council Members need to provide GRACE to everyone including themselves, staff, and citizens in this effort."
Despite the recent changes, Pastue expressed confidence that the city council can stabilize and retain future leadership.
"Well this is really a wonderful community, there has obviously been some turmoil in the past but historically from a managers perspective it's always been pretty stable and very well managed and I get the sense the community and council would like to get a return to that state that they enjoyed for many many years," Pastue said.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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