“A little better than last year.”

That was the description Blue Earth mayor Rick Scholtes gave concerning the one hour, 10 minute review of city administrator Kathy Bailey.

The annual administrator’s review was held in a closed session during the regular city council meeting on Monday, Aug. 19.

After the session was opened back up to the pubic and the press, Scholtes reported that Bailey’s average grade given by the city council members was a 5.89 on a scale of one to 10.

That number is an improvement from her marks from the year before.

Before the closed review, council members grade the administrator in 10 or 11 areas, Scholtes reports.

“I take that information and put it all together before the meeting,” Scholtes explains. “Then during the review we go over each category with Kathy.”

Scholtes reports that one area that the council feels needs improving is communication between the administrator and the public and the council.

He also says the council discussed changing the format of the review process itself.

“It is my feeling that the structure of the review itself needs to be changed,” he says.

Instead of everything being done in one closed session, Scholtes suggests it be done in two.

“I think the council needs to meet first and discuss the results of the review and come to a consensus in the different areas,” Scholtes says. “Then we can meet with the city administrator to go over the areas on the review that are good and those that need improvement.”

That way, the mayor explains, the city administrator will hear one response instead of getting direction from seven different council members.

“Sometimes the council is sending out a mixed message,” Scholtes says. “We need to all be on the same page.”