The City of Pacific could have a new city clerk as soon as next week, according to Mayor Leanne Guier.

Guier, working with an interview panel that includes Auburn’s Director of Human Resources, Brenda Heineman, and Algona’s City Administrator, Diana Quinn, interviewed candidates on Wednesday.

Pacific has operated without a city clerk and personnel director since February when former Mayor Cy Sun fired then-City Clerk Patti Kirkpatrick. Voters recalled Sun from office in a special election in June.

“We got quite a few applications, and we’ve narrowed it down to three that I thought were very good candidates,” Guier said.

Guier added that she was hopeful that one of the candidates would be suitable to present soon to the City Council for confirmation.

On the public works front, Guier said, the combination of interim Public Works Director Ken Barnett and part-time Engineer Jim Morgan is answering the needs of the City so well she may ask the council to keep them on.

“The two of those working together really fills the need for that department,” she said. “I’m actually thinking about going to council and asking them to create a public works manager position, for which I think Ken would have the qualifications — to be a manager for that department, not a director. With Jim Morgan as a part-time engineer, that really gives us what we need in that department. It’s really a win-win for us.”

Guier added that she expects to present some financial numbers to the council at Monday’s meeting.

“We’re getting there, we’re getting really close,” Guier said. “I had asked the interim finance person from the temporary agency and our current finance director (Betty Garrison) to work together and have some tentative numbers on the fund balances for the departments by next council meeting. It’s pretty aggressive, but I think it’s do-able, and they’re working very hard at doing that.”

The City Council meets at 6:30 p.m. Monday at City Hall.