T-R PHOTO BY JOE FISHER Public Works Director Justin Nickel submitted his resignation from his position last week. His last day will be Oct. 30.

Justin Nickel’s tenure as Marshalltown’s Public Works Director will be coming to a close on Oct. 30.

Nickel submitted his letter of resignation last Tuesday, and his position was posted on the city’s website this Monday. Nickel has been with the city as the director of public works since 2014. He is leaving the position to join the consulting firm Bolton and Menk, which has taken on numerous projects in the city, including the Downtown Implementation Plan.

Along with his new position, Nickel and his family will be relocating to the Des Moines area. He received interest from a number of private firms throughout his tenure with the city.

“I would say this opportunity came up at the right time,” he said.

Nickel may not be with the city or living in Marshalltown, but as a member of the Bolton and Menk team, he expects to still be working closely with the community. His ability to continue helping cities like Marshalltown is one of the things that excites him the most about his new role.

“I’ll be helping with their needs on infrastructure, maintenance, enhancements and community development in the form of housing developments in single and multi-family housing,” he said.

City Administrator Jessica Kinser said Nickel will be sorely missed.

“It’s unfortunate to see a team member go who’s been a part of a team who’s been through so much,” she said. “He’s going to leave a big hole to fill in our department head team. I’d like to thank him for all of the hard work he’s put in.”

The resignation comes with several big projects on the horizon, including phase one of State Street construction and the South Center Street viaduct likely to begin next year.

“The thing I keep thinking is we do have an assistant to the city engineer (Jay Koch), so it’s not that we’ll be completely empty-handed,” Kinser said. “I do think we want to get somebody hired as quickly as possible to continue to have project leadership. If we get somebody hired by the end of the year, that’s great timing to have someone beyond the front end of projects going out to bid next year and the budget season.”

In the interim, a portion of Nickel’s duties coordinating the Public Works Department will fall to Kinser. She said it’s just part of her job, but it could be motivation to find the next director. At her last job in Clinton, there was no Public Works Director, and all of the divisions reported directly to Kinser.

According to Kinser, there isn’t a firm timetable for when a new director will be hired, as the process is ‘candidate driven.’

Nickel looks back fondly on the work he was able to accomplish during his time in Marshalltown, especially the new police and fire facility and the ongoing work to improve the sanitary sewer. He’ll be watching closely to see the upcoming projects he had a hand in come to fruition.

FOR MORE INFO

For more information about the Public Works Director position, visit marshalltown-ia.gov.