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CONNEAUT – It took Conneaut City Council just 10 minutes in executive session Monday night to give Conneaut City Manager Jim Hockaday another sterling evaluation.

“Most 4s and 5s on a five-point scale,” explained Conneaut City Council President Debbie Newcomb.
Council members had already done their homework. A few months ago, each had received a 20-page evaluation form and was asked to score numerically the top administrator’s job performance, strengths and weaknesses.
The sheets had been tallied by Newcomb prior to Monday’s meeting.
Newcomb attributed Hockaday’s high marks to numerous projects underway in the city, such as the Risberg pipeline bringing natural gas to the area; the construction of Truck World at I-90 and Route 7; and a considerable number of infrastructure projects.
Newcomb said that the areas of improvement cited were the need for Hockaday to call more staff meetings to make sure staff is in the loop, especially with so many projects in the works.
It is important, she added, that projects align with the city’s latest Comprehensive Plan approved in early 2018.
 “It’s really an excellent evaluation,” Newcomb said. “He is also good with constituents, and we want to make sure he continues that because in the end, that’s whom we all work for.”
Hockaday’s evaluation came with an additional 2 percent pay increase on top of his contract’s automatic 2 percent raise on the anniversary of his hire, which was April, 2015.
 In April, his salary jumped to $79,792.23. The additional 2 per cent would make it $81,388.08 though Newcomb said he was given the option of adding the increase to his car allowance.  
Hockaday, who had read Council’s written evaluations prior to the meeting, said he was “obviously happy” that City Council is “fairly satisfied” with his work and job.
 “I hope I can do this for many years in the future,” he said.
Hockaday lives with his wife, Laura Jones, and their two sons in Saybrook Township.
His city manager’s contract will be up in 2020.

Pictured:
Conneaut City Manager Jim Hockaday