Sandpoint administrator settles in

SANDPOINT — City administrator Jennifer Stapleton was sworn in to the position early Monday morning by Mayor Carrie Logan, starting her tenure with the city of Sandpoint.

“I am excited to be here,” Stapleton told the various department heads who came to the ceremony.

Stapleton, 46, swore to uphold the Constitution of the U.S. and the state of Idaho and the laws of the city of Sandpoint, during her time as Sandpoint city administrator.

“It should be a very exciting year for you guys,” Logan said to the department leaders. "I am sorry I am going to miss it.”

Stapleton is settling into her new office next to the mayor’s. Her office is bare with blinds barely hung and Sandpoint Parks and Recreation Director Kim Woodruff said he has a phone for the office. She will also have Logan’s computer upon her departure on Wednesday.

The office is brand new, built in the corner of the finance department reception area. City Treasurer Shannon Syth said the finance department storage area has been moved and all of the finance employees are in one area now.

Syth said most of the construction was done using city crews, with janitorial staff taking down the sheet rock and the IT department running the wires. There were costs incurred for some supplies, such as paint and carpet for part of the area, and they needed an electrician to move plug-ins and electrical wires.

“She doesn’t even have a desk right now, just a table and chair,” Syth said. "We try to do all that kind of stuff internally.”

Syth does not have the final costs for the project, but said only the new office was added and the money came out of the general fund.

“She’s going to be over every department and interacting with them,” Syth said.

Stapleton plans to start the new position by meeting with department heads again and learning more about each area.

“I think just really sitting down with the department heads and finding out what their plans are for the year and how I can support those,” Stapleton said. "I will be looking for opportunities to get involved right away.”

Stapleton said she spent some of the holiday season in search of the perfect Sandpoint home, and moved in this past weekend about two blocks from City Hall. The house closes next week and her daughter is already setting up her room and showing interest in the local charter schools. Stapleton said it was quick, but her family follows through with plans they set. She said she will attack the city administrator position with the same vigor.

“I walked to work this morning,” Stapleton said. "When we have a plan, we execute. That’s my style.”

Stapleton formerly ran two departments in Spokane with her last three positions centered around grant funding and budgeting. She has also been involved with overseeing changes in departments and those experiences will help her with the city administrator position, Stapleton said.

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. 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.

Her work as city administrator has already started, if only in thoughts and visions. Stapleton has already 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 in early December. “I’m excited to come in new, with fresh eyes, identify opportunities and take on challenges.”

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. Greg, her husband, works as an electrician for Gonzaga University and the couple have a son, Bailey, 16, and a daughter Morgan, 13.??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.