The new city administrator of Erlanger is Mark Collier, who was one of the original members of LINK nky and is currently the city’s director of economic development.
On September 1st, Collier will take over as the city administrator.
Although Collier won’t be sworn in until the council’s September meeting, he was appointed by municipal order during Tuesday’s city council meeting. The retiring Peter Glenn will hand off the reins to him. Prior to taking over as city administrator in the summer of 2023, Glenn was the city’s director of public works.
Collier will now join the ranks of people like Sharmili Reddy, who was
appointed as Covington s city manager last month
, and Chris Moriconi as the central administrative officers of Kenton County s largest population centers: Erlanger, Covington and Independence, respectively. Covington and Independence are the county s dual county seats.
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Collier earned a journalism degree from the University of Kentucky in 2005. He worked for a financial advising firm for his first job after graduating from college. Collier told LINK nky that he differs from former city managers who had government experience because of his experience in private enterprise. Glenn was preceded by two city administrators who had previously worked as police officers.
“I think my strong suit is communications,” Collier told LINK nky.
In 2008, Collier established Fort Thomas Matters, a tiny media organization that later combined with River City News to become LINK nky. In 2016, he acquired Living Magazines, a group of lifestyle publications that had been published since 1977. Later, in 2023, he would sell the publications. The periodicals currently publish regular issues for Hyde Park, Indian Hill, and Wyoming in Ohio, as well as Fort Thomas in Kentucky.
In order to cover the 2020 general election, Collier collaborated intensively with Michael Monks, the founder of River City News. This partnership ultimately resulted in the merger that established LINK nky in 2021. Prior to joining the City of Erlanger in 2024 as the assistant city administrator and director of economic development, where he collaborated closely with Glenn, he was the COO of LINK.
Erlanger Mayor Jessica Fette praised Glenn for his tenure with the city, mentioning a recent initiative he worked on with the leaders of other local departments: renovating the break room in the city building. According to Fette, the project was a modest gesture and a means for Glenn to leave his mark on the city. It involved training individuals, including Collier, who had no prior experience in the crafts to rebuild.
Fette remarked about Glenn, “He’s so full of life lessons and is so willing to share them.”Employees of the city of Erlanger are working on remodeling the break room in the city building. Image courtesy of Jessica Fette
Starting in 2019, Collier was a member of the Fort Thomas City Council for one term. In 2020, while both were just elected lawmakers and taking part in the Northern Kentucky Chamber’s Leadership NKY program, he met Fette.
Fette claimed that Collier shared his views on leadership and that they had developed as a team via leadership and politics.
Collier stated that it is unlikely that the city will quickly rehire the director of economic development. He planned to integrate many of the responsibilities of the role, such attracting businesses to the city and building partnerships, into the requirements of the post of city administrator. According to Collier, the city may reevaluate the role of economic development director in the future if needed.
One of Collier’s accomplishments since joining the city staff, according to Fette, is his work on the Eons project, a huge 1,000-acre park complex. She described him as the project’s conductor, particularly with regard to forming alliances with nearby organizations and companies. The project’s initial phase, which includes a dog park, is still in progress. A bid has been placed for the reconstruction of the parking lot and crossroads that will lead to the dog park.An illustration of the dog park that will be built near the junction of Old Erlanger Road and Huston North Road. supplied rendering | Erlanger City
He can think big and get things done, Fette said, and those are phenomenal qualities to have in a city administrator.
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