The Sitka Assembly has offered a second interview to a candidate for the city’s top job.
In a special meeting on Friday (8-21-26) the assembly interviewed Gerrie Cotter for the municipal administrator post. Cotter has a law degree from Loyola University Law School in New Orleans, and a bachelor’s degree in international studies from West Virginia University. She currently works as the administrator of Perry Township in Stark County Ohio, a community of just under thirty thousand people.
“We have police, fire, zoning, parks, and roads departments,” she told the assembly during a video call. “I’ve been township administrator there for the past year, and I’ve done quite a bit to help them modernize their processes.”
Before moving into the township administration job last year, Cotter spent nearly 14 years working for the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services, where she led a statewide workforce development program for young adults, and did policy work. She has also served as a trustee for a township in Ohio, and on a local school board.
“So I’ve got a wide range of experience, much of it with local government. I really enjoy being able to see the improvements that you’re making at the local level. It’s much easier to see those improvements when you’re working in a particular community. So I do like that aspect of it,” she said.
“I’m also a licensed attorney in the state of New York,” she continued. “So I’m certainly capable of interpreting, drafting, recommending policy.”
The assembly prompted Cotter to share her experience in a variety of areas, from negotiating contracts with unions and doing public outreach, to building a budget and building a team.
“I think just being open-minded and listening to staff to hear what their concerns might be or what they’d like to see changed, and being flexible enough to consider those things is really important, especially when you’re dealing with diverse folks,” Cotter said. “I also think there’s ways that you can, you know, maybe create some more camaraderie and find commonalities and things that folks enjoy doing together to try and create that team environment too.”
After interviewing Cotter for around an hour, the assembly went behind closed doors in an executive session. When the group returned, Mayor Steven Eisenbeisz announced that they would advance Cotter to a second interview.
Right now, Cotter is the only candidate in the running for the municipal administrator job. The assembly began its search for a new administrator when John Leach, signaled plans to resign last fall. Leach originally planned to step down in May, but extended his work with the city through December.
Cotter’s next interview date has not yet been announced. You can listen back to the full interview here.
