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"Rubber stamp" is not in the lexicon of Salt Lake City Councilwoman Lisa Adams.
That was apparent Tuesday as she and other council members interviewed nominees for three key positions at City Hall.
Mayor Jackie Biskupski nominated Mike Reberg to direct the Department of Community and Neighborhood Development, Laura Briefer to lead the Department of Public Utilities and April Townsend to take charge of the Department of Public Services.
The council approved all of them unanimously, but not before a barrage of questions from Adams, who also took a couple of pokes at the mayor for sacking previous department heads.
It was Reberg's second nomination. The mayor earlier chose him to lead public utilities, but he withdrew after criticism that he didn't hold a degree in civil engineering and was not qualified for the post.
Before directing questions to Reberg on Tuesday, Adams called out the mayor on Reberg's job title. Adams pointed out that there is no Department of Community and Neighborhood Development. Rather, it is the Department of Community and Economic Development.
"There is no Department of Community and Neighborhood Development," Adams said, "and we [therefore] don't need a director."
Adams noted that such department changes required council approval.
Biskupski's chief of staff, Patrick Leary, explained that the mayor plans to take economic development out of that department and create a Department of Economic Development. Leary said he would discuss the change with the council during the annual budget session in May.
Adams went on to question Reberg on master plans, zoning, historic districts, billboards and bike lanes.
Perhaps the toughest questioning of the afternoon session went to Townsend, surrounding her understanding of the Department of Public Services.
But first, Adams quoted a line from Biskupski's State of the City address in January: "Any CEO can tell you, it costs far less to keep current employees satisfied and well-trained than it does to find new talents to fill their shoes."
Adams then criticized the mayor for not retaining Rick Graham, the veteran director of public services, as well as well as D.J. Baxter, the former director of the redevelopment agency, human resources Director Debra Alexander, and Jeff Niermeyer at public utilities.
"Rick Graham leaves very big shoes to fill," Adams said.
Biskupski did not retain Graham, Baxter or Alexander. Niermeyer retired in December after Biskupski was elected, but before she took office.
Adams pressed Townsend on such things as streets, urban greenery, fleet management, golf and her management style.
Although Townsend has two decades of management experience, she conceded she knew little about urban forestry or street maintenance.
Since 2012, Townsend has been the director of finance and operations for the Salt Lake County Library System. From 2005 to 2012, she served then County Mayor Peter Corroon as director of administrative services, charged with providing support for all county agencies. While there, she oversaw facilities management and real estate services, fleet management, telecommunications, and volunteer services.
Briefer's interview was smooth sailing by contrast. She has been the deputy director of public utilities for the past eight years — a big plus in the eyes of the council.