Daily Sitka Sentinel

CG Officer Tells Why He’s Right for Top Job

By SHANNON HAUGLAND
Sentinel Staff Writer
    A finalist for Sitka city administrator stressed his overarching values of “service, honesty and respect” as well as his management skills Thursday in an hour-long job interview with the Assembly.
    “In this job definitely it’s about service,” said John Leach, a career Coast Guard officer who is currently the senior aeronautical engineering systems manager at U.S. Coast Guard headquarters in Washington, D.C. “I looked at the (city’s) organizational chart over the past few weeks. There’s one thing missing from the chart. The top box there doesn’t say ‘citizens of Sitka’ on it. I think that should be at the top.”
    Leach was the first of the two finalists for the administrator job to be interviewed in person. The other finalist is Craig Cugini, a civilian administrator at the Fort Greely military base near Delta Junction, Alaska, who will be interviewed here on Sept. 27.
    Leach, 41, oversees a budget of $354 million, and is the systems, airworthiness and logistics expert for the Coast Guard fleet of more than 200 aircraft and 36 mission systems.
    “I don’t have any executive or administrative experience, as it relates to municipalities,” Leach said, “but to say I don’t have any executive or administrative experience in other settings is not true. I’ve got a pretty big responsibility in the Coast Guard now.”

John Leach, an applicant for city administrator, and his wife, Andrea, talk with Sitkans during a meet and greet event Thursday at Harrigan Centennial Hall. (Sentinel Photo by James Poulson)

    Leach has told the Assembly he currently has a good job and career in the Coast Guard, but wants to return to Sitka, where he was stationed from 2015 to 2018 as aeronautical engineering department manager at Air Station Sitka. His wife and two sons live in Sitka.
    Leach was one of the semi-finalists that the Assembly interviewed by videoconference over the past few weeks.
    “I said in my first interview that I never came into this because I wanted a career in city administration or city management,” he said Thursday. “I want to be in Sitka, I want to do good things in Sitka. ... I think I’ve got valuable skills that can help move things forward. I do see this as an opportunity to help the city.”
    Assembly members had a number of questions about style, the applicability of his skills in the military to a civilian job, and transitioning into a role managing a financially strapped city government.
    Leach, a graduate of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, said he expects it will take time to adapt to the lack of formality in civilian life, but his education, training and experience will help him make the transition.
    “I know there’s going to be practice necessary to get really good at it, but that’s leadership in generally,” he said. “There are a lot of skills you learn that can transition over as long as everyone is understanding of where each other’s coming from, and we’re marching toward the same mission.”
    The Assembly had a list of questions to choose from but were free to ask their own. Many of the questions reflected some of their concerns and past experiences related to keeping the Assembly and public up to date and informed (“transparency”), understanding the chain of command at city hall, following direction, and respecting good ideas from any quarter.
    Leach told the Assembly he understands he’s to take direction from the Assembly, which takes direction from the public. He said he values teamwork that comes from respecting what others have to offer – “crowdsourcing” – but also wants to be sure his actions align with both his supervisors and those who work under him.
    “I take the tasking from the Assembly, and I have to assume the tasking from the citizens of Sitka, that’s what they want,” he said. “As I move forward, one thing I do want to make sure of is ‘alignment’ ... If that’s the case, I’ll march forward.”
    He held off on giving his opinion on current budget issues, but on a question about setting a direction on “direction and vision,” he said it would first be “getting everyone working together again.”
    “There’s Assembly versus staff, or staff versus staff, or citizens versus Assembly,” he said. “It just seems that there’s so much of that ... The first thing I want – that long-term vision – is I want everybody together, working to make the city better.”
    Some of the most pressing issues in the community are cost of living and affordable housing, he said.
    “Those are things that are important to the citizens right now,” he said. “And if there’s a way we can start moving forward in that direction, that would be helpful.”
    Asked what he regards as his strengths and weaknesses, he said the two for him are a little bit the same.
    “I like to jump in and just tackle things, that’s what keeps me going,” he said. “I like to get things done.” His related weakness is that working hard to get things done makes it difficult to find a good “work-life balance.”
     The Assembly noted that Leach said his Coast Guard commitment means he won’t be available for the Sitka job until late February.
    “If you’re willing to take that gamble, and wait for my timeline, I think you’ll be pleased,” Leach said.