The Wells City Council has decided to officially offer their city administrator position to Christopher (CJ) Holl of Pelican Rapids.

In a closed session on Friday, April 13, the Wells City Council met privately to set specific details of the contract for the city administrator position.

The contract started with a salary of $70,000, a much higher starting wage than what was discussed in the public meeting of the council just two days prior, with up to $2,500 worth of reimbursements for moving expenses. The contract also includes three weeks of prorated vacation and a probationary review in six months for the new city administrator.

During the closed session, the council members also voted to offer the contracted position to Holl.

From the city administrator hiring committee, consisting of Wells Mayor David Braun, city clerk and co-interim city administrator Jennie Kloos, city council member Crystal Dulas, Faribault County commissioner Bill Grozkreutz, and Jeff Amy of Wells Public Utilities, the group suggested Holl as the solitary candidate for the position to be reviewed by the city council.

All of the council members, at the time of their vote, felt comfortable enough with the amount of information on Holl from the hiring committee to make a decision regarding his hiring.

With Holl set to begin his newly appointed position on May 7, the Wells City Council only has about two weeks to organize a time and date for the community to meet and greet with their new city administrator, and vise versa. Kloos says the city is currently scheduling a time and date where both Holl and his entire family can meet with the city of Wells.