By COLE REIF
Great Bend Post
When Brandon Anderson took over the position of Great Bend City Administrator last July, he mentioned he had every intent to stay in the position for five to seven years.
“As city administrators, we take our ethics very seriously,” said Anderson. “From an ethical code, the standard is you need to spend at least two years in your community. That’s what’s recommended.”
Anderson's resignation from the City of Great Bend took effect last Friday, spending just over 13 months in Great Bend. Anderson noted he has spent a year at his last two places of employment, working as a city manager in Levelland, Texas prior to arriving in Great Bend.
“The frustrating part of it…I think it reflects poorly on me because it looks like I don’t know what I’m doing or I can’t work things out in the community,” said Anderson. “That’s not the case. I want everyone to know that.”
Upon submitting his 30-day notice in July, Anderson said he was resigning for personal reasons and that he found out during the COVID-19 pandemic that “many things can easily be taken away.”
“Oftentimes, we ponder on the negative,” Anderson said. “There’s too much negative out there. I really want people to look in the mirror and appreciate what we have in Great Bend. The staff does the best that they can and works as hard as they can.”
Former Assistant City Administrator Logan Burns was appointed to replace Anderson, starting Monday, Aug. 12. Burns began working with the city in 2019 as the building inspector and spent time as interim city administrator prior to Anderson’s hire.
“I think it’s the right choice,” said Anderson. “It’s good when you find someone with that kind of passion and interest in your community. Logan is from here, which is good and bad sometimes in that role. He’s a good, young man that has put a lot into Great Bend and will do a good job moving forward.”
Anderson has accepted the position of plants facility manager for the school district in Garden City.
“We are all in this together…community members, taxpayers,” added Anderson. “City council sets the budget then city staff spends that money as judiciously as possible. It’s a big circle that we need to understand and appreciate as opposed to being negative or critical. If there is negative in it, make sure it’s constructive. Too often, people get their 10% of the truth and run with it. There are a lot of other factors involved.”