Politics & Government

Mendota Heights City Administrator Accepts Position in Farmington

David McKnight will be leading the city he grew up in, marking the second public leadership position to accept a position in Farmington this week.

The city of Farmington has handed a double whammy to Mendota Heights leadership this week.

Mendota Heights City Administrator David McKnight is expected to become the new Farmington city administrator by the end of the summer.

“They offered me the job yesterday and I accepted,” said McKnight, who is a resident of Farmington.

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The Farmington City Council was expected to narrow their list of candidates down this week, but in discussion determined they all had the same top pick, according to a report by Thisweek Live.

McKnight’s roots in the community—he was once on the city council— were cited as a deciding factor.

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“I knew that he would have another city management position in his career,” said Mendota Heights Mayor Sandra Krebsbach. “I think Farmington came along sooner than either one of us anticipated.”

McKnight said Thursday that he’s feeling “very good, very excited—a chance to go home.”

McKnight was the administrator of Dodge County before coming to Mendota Heights in late 2009.

The biggest issue facing Mendota Heights over the course of the transition will be the budget, said McKnight. “We’ll probably get that 90 percent done anyway before I leave.” He said he was “very confident” that the department heads could take it from there.

“I think it was a very wise choice on their part,” said Krebsbach. “He’s done an excellent job for us in Mendota Heights. He’s brought a lot of clarity.”

Meanwhile, the West St. Paul-Mendota Heights-Eagan School District learned Tuesday that the hiring of Superintendent Jay Haugen for the open Farmington position was official.

The Mendota Heights City Council won’t likely take any formal action until receiving McKnight’s official resignation, which Krebsbach said she expects in mid-July. She anticipated that an interim administrator would be appointed while a search is launched.


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