Cape still pondering city needs for new fire chief hiring

Three months since the job was vacated, a hiring team is still determining exactly what Cape Girardeau needs in its next fire chief.

City manager Michael Miller expects to receive criteria from the team in about a week to be used in advertisements, which will be sent to various firefighters associations across the country. However the ads may not appear in print until early next year, depending on publication deadlines, Miller said.

Since former chief Michael Lackman's resignation in August, Miller has met occasionally with the five-member hiring team, comprised of the city's human resources director Dan Ward, public information officer Tracey Glenn, clerk Gayle Conrad, inspections director Rob McClary and fire department Capt. Mark Starnes.

Prior to Cape Girardeau, Lackman worked 26 years with the fire department in Elk Grove Village, a Chicago suburb, spending his last eight years there as an assistant chief. He took the Cape Girardeau job at an annual salary of $62,500.

Once again, assistant chief Mark Hasheider was asked to step in as interim fire chief until a permanent replacement is found for the job. He previously served as interim chief between Lackman and former chief Dan White, who resigned in April 2001. This time, Hasheider said he is applying what he learned then to help him now.

"I'm not as hesitant to make decisions in this interim period as I was in the last one," Hasheider said. "By that, I mean those permanent decisions affecting the future of the department, such as hiring firefighters. We're also entering our budget-making process shortly and decisions will have to made on that."

Hasheider was one of four city firefighters who applied for the job when White resigned. Since the day Lackman's resignation was announced, some firefighters at Station No. 1 have voiced support for Hasheider to fill the spot.

"I've appreciated the support I've gotten from the staff and the general public," he said, adding that even if he isn't chosen as the next chief, he has no plans to leave the department.

Miller said Hasheider is doing a fine job as interim chief, but the hiring team will also look outside the area to find someone to fulfill the specific needs of Cape Girardeau's fire department. A survey was taken of the firefighters to help the hiring team determine what those specific needs are.

In addition, the team is searching for someone who will lead as chief in a "team management style," congruent with the way Miller prefers to operate, he said.

Differences between Lackman's management style and Miller's were cited by the former chief in his resignation.

mwells@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 160