Less than a week after the mayor publicly demanded his resignation, it appears city administrator Craig Malin will be replaced.
Davenport Mayor Bill Gluba called for Malin, and city attorney Tom Warner, to step down during a news conference Thursday, June 18, 2015. Gluba said Malin and Warner had “overstepped their authority” in connection with a contract for the extension of Elmore Avenue, a new road that will lead to the future Rhythm City Casino at the interchange of Interstate 74 and Interstate 80.
While some agreed with Gluba’s argument, six aldermen skipped the meeting at which they were to vote on dismissing Malin and Warner; that left the council without a quorum and no vote happened. Gluba later defended his actions, but adjusted his statement to only call for Malin to step down.
“The decision to spend somewhere between $1.6 and $5 million was made by Mr. Malin without our consent, and he’s only allowed to spend $50,000 with our approval,” Mayor Gluba said. “I’ll let Warner off the hook, [but] Malin knew exactly what he did and failed to tell us. As far as I’m concerned, he’s got to go.”
Now, it appears the back-and-forth over the issue will, ultimately, still end with Malin out as city administrator.
All but two aldermen attended a news briefing held Wednesday morning, June 24, 2015, at which Alderman Jason Gordon confirmed Malin’s last day as Davenport City Administrator will be Friday, June 26. Malin has agreed to a deal to leave his role with the city, Gordon said.
Malin was not at the briefing. Aldermen Mike Matson and Ray Ambrose were also not there.
The council was scheduled to vote to accept Malin’s resignation, and to appoint an interim city administrator, during their regularly-scheduled meeting set for Wednesday evening, June 24.
