That $23,500 search netted 50 applicants who were whittled to five finalists. The council members ended up selecting the in-house contender, assistant city manager Scott Spence.
Some residents have criticized the council for wasting $23,500 when they could have selected Spence at the outset.
We disagree.
It was important to test Spence’s skills, knowledge and abilities against other top contenders. We’re confident that if Spence didn’t measure up, the Lacey City Council members would have selected the better candidate.
The fact is that Spence, 40, learned at the knee of the master and will be an able successor. Cuoio, 62, retired this summer. In 1987 when he took the top job, Lacey had a population of 15,840, with 97 employees and a budget of just over $15.4 million. Today, Lacey has 42,393 residents, with 252 on the city payroll and an annual operating budget of $107 million.
Cuoio, with Spence at his right hand, gained a reputation as a strong fiscal conservative. When nearby city and county officials were slashing budgets and discharging employees, Lacey weathered the storm. It was Cuoio who built nine city buildings – including City Hall, Lacey Library, the Senior Center and Community Center – without raising taxes.
We believe that Spence will pursue a similar, fiscally conservative approach to city governance.
Spence, who took the oath of office as his wife, Angela, and children, Nicholas, 6, and, Sophia, 9, watched, was the unanimous choice of the City Council and was tops on the list of community residents and staff members who interacted with the finalists and forwarded their recommendations to the council.
Mayor Tom Nelson summed up the process best when he said, “It shows the community we went out to find the best and brightest for the job. We found our new star.”
