Lakewood Council Appoints City Attorney Wachter as Interim Manager

Ben Sclair | February 12, 2013

By Jeff Brewster, City of Lakewood

LAKEWOOD, WA – During a special meeting last night, the Lakewood City Council voted unanimously to appoint City Attorney Heidi Wachter as the interim city manager effective February 24, 2013. Wachter will take over interim duties after City Manager Andrew Neiditz departs to serve as the executive director for the newly established South Sound 911 agency.

Last week, the council approved a motion to hire a Seattle-based executive recruiting firm, the Prothman Company, to conduct search for a new city manager. Such a process typically takes around 3 months.

Ms. Wachter has served as Lakewood’s city attorney since 2002. Before that, she served as an assistant city attorney in Tacomaand as a deputy prosecuting attorney in Snohomish County. She earned a law degree from the University of Puget Sound (nowSeattle University) and a Master of Public Administration from the University of Washington. Ms. Wachter has been active in her profession, currently serving as Chair of the Washington State Bar Association Administrative Law Section and is a Past President of the Washington State Association of Municipal Attorneys. She is an active member of the Clover Park Rotary Club and lives inTacoma with her husband Neil and their three daughters.

Ms. Wachter remarked, “I am excited at this opportunity to serve the council, our citizens and city staff. Andrew Neiditz has developed a strong management team and we will all work together to ensure the next city manager can hit the ground running.”