Bessemer hires Mandy Lake as city manager

By PAMELA JANSSON

pjansson@yourdailyglobe.com

Bessemer — The Bessemer City Council voted on Monday evening to hire Mandy Lake as the new city manager.

The action is pending the negotiation of Lake’s new city contract.

Lake has been the interim city manager for nearly seven months.

The council had named her to that role on March 25 after the resignation of previous city manager Christopher Frazer on March 15.

Originally from Detroit, Frazer had started the job on Nov. 6, 2023, soon after Lake had been hired as clerk/treasurer on Oct. 2 of that year. She continued to carry that role after becoming interim manager.

Councilman Mark Serwe made the motion to hire Lake on Monday, with councilman Adam Zak seconding the motion.

Mayor Peter Tacconelli, councilman Mark Movrich and councilwoman Linda Nelson also voted to support Lake in a unanimous decision.

“This has been a long process, and I think there’s been a fair amount of people that maybe expected we were going to go this route,” said Zak after the vote.

He added, “The wait was actually worth it because it gave us a better opportunity to evaluate Mandy on a fair basis, and I think she has past proved herself.”

Zak said that “time and again,” Lake has saved the city “a bunch of money” by avoiding overpayments on expenses, by securing grants and by general fiscal management.

He concluded, “Her experience, common sense and expertise makes her more than qualified for this job.”

Previously, Lake served as treasurer for the city of Wakefield. She also has served as supervisor for Wakefield Township since 2020, and — prior to that — had been the township clerk since 2012.

She earned her bachelor’s degree in diagnostic genetics from Northern Michigan University and then worked for the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota for four years. Lake and her husband, Chris, own Lake’s Flower Cabin in Wakefield Township.

Nelson said she is “very, very happy” with the result. “We’re very lucky,” she said, adding that she foresees no issues in negotiating Lake’s contract.

Lake said she will continue her responsibilities as clerk/treasurer until after the Nov. 5 election.

In other news, council members also:

— Learned from Lake that the city has received a Michigan Category B grant for $64,979 from the Department of Transportation for the milling and paving of Cinnabar Street from N. Clayberg to N. Tamarack streets. She said bidding will proceed after MDOT clears that process, and she predicted that the work will be completed in the summer of 2025.

— Learned from Lake that Gogebic County treasurer Lisa Hewitt has informed her that money from the Michigan State Land Bank Authority should be available to fund the demolition of a structure at 111 W. Cellar. The project timeline will be forwarded when available.

— Accepted and filed a water system sanitary survey required by the state’s Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy.

— Accepted and filed a quarterly report by Undersheriff Jorge Cruz from the Gogebic County Sheriff’s Office. The report shared details regarding the sheriff’s contract to patrol city roadways.

All votes were unanimous with all members present.

At the end of the meeting, council members entered a closed session to discuss negotiations regarding city union workers. No action followed.

The council’s next regular meeting will be on Oct. 28 at 6 p.m. in the Bessemer City Hall.