Episode 3 of “The Grovecast” has officially dropped. Envisioned as a way to build
connection between city government and residents, ‘The GroveCast” interviews city
staff and officials to bring a human side to government.
This month’s show hosts Phil Jents and Emily Schmitz featured their boss, City
Administrator Jennifer Levitt.
“Well thank you guys, I’m excited to join you,” Levitt told Jents and Schmitz. “Although a
little nervous following the mayor. I mean he is my boss.”
Levitt spent “The Grovecast” sharing what a city administrator does and more on the
many departments an administrator supervises.
“So a city administrator has to know a lot,” she said. “I think the hardest part is you have
to know a lot about everything.”
Levitt started with the city just over 20 years ago as city engineer, following experience
with the DNR.
“Public works, that’s kind of in my wheelhouse, because I started as the city engineer,
so public works feels like that safe space for me,” Leavitt said.
Also involved in the city administrator’s job are things like finance, which isn’t as
exciting.
“She tells me ‘no’ a lot,” Levitt said of Finance Director Brenda Malinowski.
Touching on the city’s AAA bond rating—deemed “excellent”—the really fun part of
being an administrator is solving problems.
“I was educated to be an engineer, which is a problem solver,” Levitt said. “Just a fancy
way to say ‘problem solver.’”
Levitt told Jents and Schmitz that her dream job was to be a city engineer.
“Back in high school I was drafting at our small town with ink and mylar, that’s like the
olden days Auto CAD...I will never forget the day I saw the post and I applied for the job
in Cottage Grove, and I really think I found my dream job.”
From there Levitt spent time as Cottage Grove’s Community Development Director,
later becoming the City Administrator. The CG City Council sets policy while Levitt and
other staff work on the implementation. An avid birder, Levitt enjoys the outdoors in her
spare time.
“The Grovecast” drops once a month on the city’s YouTube channel.