Transparent? Caro City Manager’s Resume Lacking

CARO — Scott R. Czasak, rated 'Acceptable' as Caro's city manager, left something off his resume when applying for the job in 2022.

Czasak began working as Caro city manager Dec. 6, 2022, but came to town with a resume failing to mention the seven weeks he worked as village manager in Brooklyn, in Jackson County, from May 1 to June 17 of that year.

Czasak resigned from the Brooklyn job June 17, 2022, though village officials decline comment on why he left the position.

Brooklyn, however, agreed to pay Czasak $12,000 in salary, along with three months of health-insurance premiums, as part of a "Resignation and Release Agreement." According to the agreement, the $12,000 and the three months of health-insurance coverage were compensation that Czasak "is not otherwise entitled to in the event of resignation."

The agreement also stated that if the village of Brooklyn is contacted for an employment reference or recommendation regarding Czasak, the village "shall limit its response to providing the requesting party a letter which states only (Czasak's) position at the time of resignation, his salary, his job duties, the fact that (Czasak's) job performance and skills were satisfactory, and the fact that he resigned."

Czasak, who interviewed in person on Saturday, March 14 for the city manager job in Harbor Springs in Emmet County, has received raises since arriving in Caro, according to documents obtained by The Advertiser using the Michigan Freedom of Information Act.

Caro City Council members agreed to pay Czasak an annual salary of $75,000 when he began working as city manager on Dec. 6, 2022. Czasak was not the council's first choice; he was hired after former Bay City Mayor Christopher Shannon declined an offer.

In 2024, Caro council members approved a three-year contract for Czasak, whose annual salary this year is $105,000. Czasak's annual salary is set to rise to $110,000 in 2027.

Czasak has shopped around for other jobs – in addition to the city manager post in Harbor Springs – during the past few years. He unsuccessfully sought the city manager's job in Boyne City in Charlevoix County in the summer of 2025, according to boynecitizen.com.

In the fall of 2024, Czasak failed to land the city manager job in Buchanan in southwest Michigan, according to The Herald-Palladium newspaper.

Caro City Council members said they rated Czasak as "Acceptable" on his annual evaluation in January. That rating is the third-highest on a five-tiered scale where "Outstanding" is the highest rating and "Unsatisfactory" is the lowest.

According to Czasak's resume – the one failing to mention his time spent as village manager in Brooklyn – Czasak had no experience as a municipal manager prior to landing the Caro city manager position.

The resume states his most recent job before seeking the Caro manager's post was as chairman of the Ford River Township Planning Commission, an entity that met once each month and for special meetings in Ford River Township, population 2,109, in Delta County, near Escanaba.

The resume also notes Czasak served from 2020 to 2022 as executive director of the Escanaba Downtown Development Authority. A report by escanabaradiogroup.com, however, noted that Czasak resigned his job with the Escanaba DDA to take the village manager job in Brooklyn.

The resume Czasak apparently used when applying for the Caro job also failed to state he was employed as a temporary worker for Armada Township, in Oakland County, from July of 2022 into September of 2022, according to Armada Township records.

The city of Caro, on its website, states the city "is committed to open, transparent and accountable government."

"We believe that an informed community is a stronger community, and we strive to ensure residents, businesses, and visitors have clear access to city information, decision-making processes, and public records," the city website states.

During his interview Saturday with the Harbor Springs City Council, Czasak did not mention his time as Brooklyn's village manager.

He told the Harbor Springs council that he worked for two years as the director of the Escanaba Downtown Development Authority, and then indicated his next job was as Caro's city manager.

"I'd put my record (in Caro) against a lot of the former managers; we had a lot of turnover prior to me being there," Czasak said to the Harbor Springs City Council. "I was the sixth Caro city manager in six years, and one of the things that I bring to the table is that I think that because of where I'm at in my career, and where my past is, I have more patience than I think some other people do. And I'm sure that as council members and mayors, you know that no one calls city hall because they're happy.

"So de-escalation, and talking to people, and sometimes giving them an answer – which can't always be 'Yes,' but at least giving them an answer – is something I value."

Caro council members said their Jan. 20 rating of Czasak as "Acceptable" is the result of Czasak's annual evaluation. They didn't provide a summary of council members' ratings of the manager on each of 33 questions on the evaluation form.

Council members were asked to rate Czasak in three general categories – as Caro's chief administrator, as a representative of the city, and in terms of his city council relationship.

Czasak's evaluation, or any details accompanying it, may not have been part of Czasak's personnel file, which was among the documents The Advertiser requested in a Freedom of Information Act request on Feb. 26. The evaluation or any related documents weren't provided to the newspaper as a result of that request, which sought "copies of all documents in Mr. Czasak's personnel file."

According to state Attorney General Dana Nessel's office, a public officer's or employee's routine performance evaluation is not exempt from public disclosure, even when the evaluation is discussed in a closed meeting held pursuant to the Open Meetings Act.