Stapleton dreams of calling area home

SANDPOINT — There are many exciting opportunities ahead for the city and city administrator candidate Jennifer Stapleton is looking forward to being a part of them.

The public is welcome to meet Stapleton, Wednesday, Dec. 16 at 4 p.m. It will be the only opportunity to ask questions before the council votes to appoint her to the position during the regular council meeting at 5:30 p.m.

“It’s a great community and it’s an opportunity for me to take on some new challenges, too,” Stapleton said. “I really value and respect the people who work for me.”

Stapleton, 46, currently runs two departments in Spokane, and is excited for the change. She said this move is the next logical step in her career, and her family has always wanted to end up in the Sandpoint area. She saw the headline in The Daily Bee that the city was looking to fill the new position and thought the position would bring her family closer to their long-term goals of being in Sandpoint.

“I decided at that point to throw my hat in the ring and here we are,” Stapleton said.

Her last three positions have centered around grants, which brings in budgeting experience. She has also been involved with overseeing changes in departments and those experiences will help her with the city administrator position, Stapleton said.

She spent about two years as the director of grants, marketing and technology with the Inland Northwest Community Foundation during its rebranding process, which moved the INCF outreach into North Idaho.

From there, she was the grants administrator for Spokane County for almost six years, starting in January 2008. She was the chief compliance officer for an $80 million annual grant budget for the county. The grants covered a wide range of departments, including law enforcement, water, sewer, and the health district.

“I worked with virtually every department,” Stapleton said. “I was specifically involved with economic development projects.”

She was recruited by the city of Spokane in October 2013. The city had been dealing with many years of audit findings, which jeopardizes a city’s chances of obtaining grants.

“In addition to that, there were several audit findings on the federal level,” Stapleton said.

The city established an integrated Grants Management Department, and in the one, full fiscal year she was with the city, all audits came back clean.

“We had a clean single audit report,” Stapleton said. “I am really proud of that.”

The state auditor told her he doesn’t remember a time when the city had a clean audit. Stapleton was awarded the Stewardship Award from the state auditor’s office for her work in Spokane.

“I am super proud of that because it was really heavy lifting,” Stapleton said.

Her work as city administrator has already started, if only in thoughts and visions. Stapleton has talked with mayor-elect Shelby Rognstad about the city Comprehensive Plan. It is currently up for renewal and she feels it is a good opportunity to achieve some of the city’s visions.

Stapleton also is looking forward to the Barlow Stadium at War Memorial Field grandstands project. She said these are just two of the many great opportunities for the city. The city is working on a new website, and blogs and media will be other avenues explored for engaging the community.

“I haven’t come in with any preconceived notions,” Stapleton said. “I’m excited to come in new, with fresh eyes, identify opportunities and take on challenges.”

She sees the new position as a leadership role for the departments and wants to help them achieve the best for the community. She is excited to work with the department leaders, elected officials and the community.

“There’s so many opportunities in so many areas,” Stapleton said.

Goals for the new job include community engagement and providing support and leadership for the department heads. She said beyond that, goals will be formed as she acclimates to the new position. Her main challenge, she said, will be building connections with the community. She has spent a lot of time in the community over the past decade, but has never lived in Sandpoint.

“I want to work on ways our city and our various departments can be better engaging in the community,” Stapleton said. “The worst thing that can happen is to go to a community where the citizens don’t want to be engaging.”

Originally from Helena, Mont., she moved to Spokane in 1987 to attend college at Gonzaga University. She graduated in 1991 with a bachelor’s in political science, and received a master’s in public administration from Eastern Washington University in 1998.

For the past 10 years, the Stapleton family has spent weekends at Lake Pend Oreille.

Stapleton said the family will eventually all live in the Sandpoint area, but for now, she will stay at a friend’s condo and make the commute.

Greg, her husband, works as an electrician for Gonzaga University and the school gives free college to their children as a benefit for working there. He will continue to work there for the college benefit for their son, Bailey, 16, and daughter Morgan, 13.

Stapleton said this will not stop the family from taking part in many of Sandpoint’s traditions.

“We definitely plan as a family to be involved in the community,” Stapleton said, adding their family plans are not set in stone at this time and they will “figure it all out,” over time.

“We’re a family that believes in volunteerism,” Stapleton said. “You can’t be a city administrator and not know the city or the community. It’s not a day job.”

Free time for the family involves summers spent on Lake Pend Oreille. They frequently visit the Farmer’s Market and workout at Cross Fit. They own a powerboat that keeps them on the water skiing and paddle boarding, and they enjoy hiking, biking and other outdoor activities. And even though she is from Montana, she said she is not a fan of the snow.

“We’re usually burning gas out on the lake,” Stapleton said. “Definitely in the summer, we are in the water.”

Pending City Council approval, Stapleton will be sworn in Jan. 4, 2016.