TINA L. SCOTT
EDITOR
On Tuesday, Oct. 4, 2022, Dave Johnson spent his last day serving Merrill as City Administrator, and on Oct. 5, he joined the ranks of the retired.
Prior to being appointed to serve in Merrill in 2012, he had served as County Administrator in Wabasha County, Minn.; City Administrator in Valley City, N. Dak.; Operations & Maintenance Director for the Metropolitan Sewer District of Louisville & Jefferson County, and Administrator of Storm & Wastewater Maintenance for Indianapolis, Ind.
In his capacity as City Administrator, Johnson’s responsibilities included providing administrative management services to support the Merrill Mayor and Common Council and also serving as the City’s Human Resources Director.
Born and raised in Wausau, Johnson currently resides in Merrill. He has a bachelor’s degree in Political Science and History from the University of Wisconsin, a master’s in American Government/Planning from Purdue University, and a master’s in Public Administration from Indiana University.
He has a passion for history, collecting artifacts, and particularly mining history and Old Copper Culture; has developed three websites on mining history and one on Old Copper Culture; and has written 50+ articles on these topics, published in the U.S., England, Germany, and France. He also enjoys outdoor activities and world travel.
Until the City of Merrill Personnel & Finance Committee and Common Council are able to recruit and identify an appropriate replacement to fill the City Administrator position, Merrill Police Chief Corey Bennett and Public Works Director\City Engineer Rod Akey are working together to serve as interim co-Administrators for the City.