Kim Wasser’s first job with the City of Collinsville was as a part-time police dispatcher in 1989. Twenty five years later, she was named the city clerk.
Collinsville City Clerk Kim Wasser / Photo by Roger Starkey
With the exception of a seven-year stint with Kerr-McGee, Wasser has been with the City of Collinsville since her days as a part-dispatcher. Her familiarity with the City, and the City Council’s familiarity with her, made the decision to appoint her an easy one, City Manager Scott Williams said.
“She is a hard worker and a proven commodity,” Williams said. “It was an easy transition, given her work history, and everyone knows what kind of employee she is.”
The 1987 Collinsville High School graduate, and 1989 Southwestern Illinois College graduate, became a full-time clerk at the police department in 1990, working the 5 p.m. to 1 a.m. shift. Over the next seven years, Wasser moved to the day shift, got married and had a child.
Wasser was introduced to her husband, Collinsville police officer Terry Wasser, by her father, who was also a police officer. Terry was working swing shifts in 1997 when the police department decided to have the clerks do the same, Wasser said. Two parents working swing shifts was not going to be good for their young child, so Wasser found another job.
Seven years later, in 2004, the Kerr-McGee plant in Madison closed. Wasser’s last day at the plant was a Friday, and her first day as a community service officer with the Collinsville Police Department was the following Monday. As a CSO, Wasser did a bit of everything, from assisting with prisoners to taking minor police reports, she said.
Wasser became a code enforcement officer in 2011. Two years later, she became a management analyst in the Community Development department. Still working with code enforcement, Wasser also issued commercial and residential building permits, processed liens against property, and tracked and reported performance measures for the department. One of her proudest accomplishments while with Community Development, Wasser said, was being part of the development of the program that removes blighted homes from Collinsville neighborhoods.
When Collinsville City Clerk Cheryl Brombolich retired on Sept. 15, Wasser became interested in the position as a way to advance in her career and improve herself, she said. Despite 18 years with the City, Mayor John Miller said Wasser has her work cut out for her in a completely new position, but he is confident in her ability.
“She brings expertise to the job. I think she’ll do a good job,” Miller said. “She hit the office running.”
Brombolich was a very good record keeper, which is helping Wasser adjust, she said. One day she plans to put her stamp on the city clerk’s job, but for now she is focused on learning.
“I would like to be able to put my own final touches on the position, with how I do things, but that will have to wait until I get a handle on the job,” Wasser said.
Thrown directly into the fire, Wasser must assist the mayor with the renewal of all liquor licenses in the city by Dec. 31, as well as process the renewal of all of the video gaming licenses by the same date.
Wasser was appointed by a unanimous vote of the City Council on Oct. 27. The same ordinance noted Tracy Carlson and Julie Jackson as deputy city clerks. Williams said the two have been serving in those roles, which is primarily as a backup for the city clerk, but it was never noted in the ordinance.
Upon Brombolich’s retirement, Williams modified the position so that employees who reported to the city clerk in the past now report directly to the city manager. The change removed an unnecessary layer of management, Williams said.
