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West Jordan is close to hiring a new city manager — a move leaders hope will help put an end to missteps and infighting that have plagued Utah's fourth-largest municipality for months.

Among four finalists for the job out of 21 applicants are: West Jordan Interim City Manager Bryce Haderlie, Provo City chief administrative officer Wayne Parker, North Salt Lake City assistant manager and economic-development director Kenneth Leetham and Mark Palesh, CEO of the Magellan Group, a Salt Lake City real estate investment company.

All were interviewed in a public meeting Wednesday night, after which the council retreated behind closed doors to deliberate. Members picked their top choice but aren't announcing it until completing negotiations on terms of the contract.

Under the city's form of government, the manager runs the day-to-day affairs of the municipality, including making hiring and firing decisions.

West Jordan has been without a permanent city manager for a year, following the abrupt, and unexplained, resignation of Rick Davis.

Haderlie, who at that time was assistant manager, has been serving as interim city manager ever since.

Council members had decided not to hire Davis' permanent replacement soon after his departure because of the expense. They had approved a generous severance package for Davis that included nearly a year's salary and benefits ­— a package worth an estimated $200,000. Those payments ended June 30, when Davis began in his new position as city manager of Baytown, Texas.

Some council members have blamed continuing bickering and dissension on the lack of a permanent city manager at the helm. The animosity has broken into public view several times — most recently this week when the mayor sought a court order stopping the council from slashing his $89,500 annual salary by 90 percent. The case was dismissed by a judge following a 30-minute emergency hearing Tuesday, but the salary-cut proposal soon was pulled from the council agenda without action.

Rolfe, in a prepared statement Thursday, called the selection of a new city manager "an important decision [that] impacts the future of our city."