Burnsville City Manager to Retire in Spring

The city of Burnsville will soon be on the search for a new top administrator.

Tuesday, Craig Ebeling announced that he would retire on March 29, 2013 after 10 years as the city manager. 

"I could not imagine a better place to serve in government than at this city," Ebeling said in a note to the city council. "I am privileged to have the opportunity to do so."

Though Ebeling was promoted to the city's top spot in 2003, his career in Burnsville truly began in 1987, after serving as an engineer for both the cities of Worthington and Savage. At the time, he was hired as the Assistant City Engineer. In the intervening years, he rose steadily through the ranks. He moved up to City Engineer just one year later, then in 1993 he was promoted to Deputy City Manager for Parks/Planning/Public Works. He left the city for a six-year period from 1995 to 2001 for a stint in the private sector, but in 2001 he returned to Burnsville city government, hired as the Director of Development and Redevelopment. He was promoted one last time in 2003, taking office as Burnsville's sixth city manager. 

City officials credit Ebeling with leading the city safely through both thick and thin. He was one of the architects of the city's Infrastructure Trust Fund in 1995, which allows the city to keep a meticulously planned maintenance schedule and an adequate stockpile of funds for the work. he also saw the city through an era of relative austerity in 2009 and 2010 after the national economy collapsed.

"He has provided solid leadership inside City Hall, and has been an outstanding partner to our council members, our community and me," Burnsville Mayor Elizabeth Kautz said in a press release.

Kautz praised Ebeling as "thoughtful logical, and intellectual."

"This will be a difficult transition for all of us," She said.

The city plans to hire an executive search firm to find Ebeling's successor. They hope to have a replacement by April 1, 2013.

Ebeling's retirement is the third to hit Burnsville's highest governmental offices in the last year. This past spring the cty bid adieu to Ebeling's right-hand man, former Deputy City Manager Tom Hansen. This summer, Police Chief Bob Hawkins announced that he too would be retiring.

Follow us on Twitter | Like us on Facebook | Sign up for our daily newsletter| Blog for us