The Sparks City Council Monday approved an independent investigation into its City Manager, Neil Krutz. Krutz barely held onto his job last month in a split council vote.
Sparks City Council member Dian VanderWell asked for the investigation after his contract extension was approved. She said she’s heard too many complaints about his tenure at the city. She was supported by Council member Charlene Bybee.
VanderWell also wanted his contract terminated last month following a poor annual performance review. She said she had concerns about Krutz’s performance despite 25 years of management experience and hours of leadership training each year.
“I’ve encouraged people to go to HR, and I’ve encouraged them to go to the mayor also, but the unfortunate part is we have employees here that do not feel comfortable doing that,” she said as to why she requested an outside investigation.
Past and present employees have expressed concerns about Krutz.
“I worked with Neil in his various positions within the department and got to witness firsthand his autocratic and ineffective leadership style and the morale issues it caused amongst the staff,” one wrote. “I unfortunately saw how Neil drove away many talented city staff and division leaders and took retaliatory actions against staff who disagreed with his positions.”
Another called Krutz a “liability and [a] morale killing person” who “would yell at and belittle the employees.”
Krutz did not respond to a request for comment. His actions have led to ire among city union workers, as well as an ethics complaint.
The investigation will encourage complainants to report directly to the consultant in order to avoid any conflicts within the city.
Sparks’ human resources director said that any complaints about Krutz would normally be investigated with the knowledge of Mayor Lawson. VanderWell said a third party would be more objective.
Council member Donald Abbot made the motion for “a complaint-driven investigation into the city manager and the performance of his duties under his contract as it relates to toxic leadership, negative employee survey results, employee morale, gender bias or whether the city manager is exercising the care skill and diligence of a reasonable, prudent executive.”
The council voted unanimously for the investigation. More details, such as the cost, are expected to be covered in a future meeting.
