Olathe City Manager Michael Wilkes will retire at the end of January, despite a last-minute vote by city council last week to keep him in his role.
Wilkes shared the news over the weekend in an email to city officials obtained by the Post, saying he will retire on schedule because the city council was divided over whether to extend his contract.
The reversal comes just days after a contentious closed-door special meeting on Friday, during which the Olathe City Council voted 4-3 to delay his retirement and halt the nearly complete search for his replacement.
Wilkes announced his retirement in July after almost 27 years with the city. In a letter to the city, he noted his retirement will be effective in the first quarter of 2026 “as is appropriate with the hiring of a new City Manager.”
Wilkes notified city staff in the email over the weekend that his last day on the job will be Jan. 30.
The city conducted a nationwide search for his replacement. Olathe officials confirmed that, as of last month, the search was down to three finalists.
All further discussions about the candidates — including the names of the finalists and a timeline for naming a replacement — have taken place in executive session, meaning those details are unavailable to the public.
City council split at closed-door meeting
Four members of Olathe’s governing body — Mayor John Bacon and Councilmembers Robyn Essex, Kevin Gilmore and Marge Vogt — voted to extend Wilkes’ contract at the special meeting. Details of the proposed contract extension, including how long the city council was asking Wilkes to continue in his role, were unavailable at time of publication.
In audio from the special meeting obtained by the Post, Bacon is heard saying that keeping Wilkes on would be necessary “to support continuity and maintain momentum” on major city projects. He expressed concern that a change in leadership could affect progress on Halo Ridge, the downtown post office relocation and the I-35/Sante Fe interchange.
Councilmembers Matthew Schoonover, Dean Vakas and LeEtta Felter opposed extending Wilkes’ contract.
Schoonover expressed frustration at the meeting that after the city conducted a search and interviewed candidates, some of his colleagues on the city council instead wanted to extend Wilkes’ contract.
“I’m very upset, quite frankly, that the last act of this council is to usurp that interview process,” he said. “There is no reason for this council to take the action that it has taken today.”
Schoonover said the city council should have waited until the two new councilmembers are sworn in next month to vote on the next city manager.
“Now, the fact that some of us don’t like that’s what voters have decided is no reason to deny the will of the voters the ability to weigh in on that decision,” he said.
Both Gilmore and Vogt — two of the four votes for extending Wilkes’ contract — will leave office in January. Gilmore chose not to run for reelection, and Vogt was unseated in November by challenger Kevin Deneault.
Jeff Creighton, who won Gilmore’s at-large seat against Rob Olsen, said he was surprised to hear about the vote, but understands why the city council would want to make sure the role is filled.
“Michael made that announcement long enough ago that I was really fine with and trusted our council to make a good decision and to have a new city manager lined up by the end of the year,” Creighton told the Post.
Schoonover later posted on Facebook that he was not happy with keeping Wilkes on after going through most of the hiring process.
“Susan Sherman was far and away the best candidate,” he wrote.
Susan Sherman has served as deputy city manager since 2021. Prior to that, she worked as assistant city manager since 1989.
Felter echoed Schoonover’s frustration.
“The barrier for women in leadership is a challenge that I want everybody to take note of,” she said.
Creighton said that he would support Sherman as Wilkes’ replacement, saying she’d do a “great job.”
Hiring process under public scrutiny
The search to find Wilkes’ replacement has already drawn criticism. Olathe residents circulated a petition urging the city council to delay hiring a new city manager until the two incoming councilmembers take office. The petition criticized the timing and transparency of the process.
“The Mayor is blatantly ignoring the will of the people by refusing to wait on a final decision until after the newly elected members of council are seated in January,” it reads.
Organizers encouraged residents to attend Tuesday’s city council meeting wearing green in protest.
What’s next?
The city has yet to announce next steps regarding the search for Wilkes’ successor or whether the process will resume under the incoming city council.
