Mark Collins has been Sheridan's city administrator for three years, and his contract was set to expire at the end of November. The City Council offered Collins a year and a half extension, but he decided to leave the position.
Collins said he has enjoyed his time in Sheridan, but he wants to move on to new professional opportunities.
"I've been involved throughout my career in education and in teaching, and actually I have a really wonderful opportunity to get back into teaching in the very near future. So I'm excited about that, and [I'm] looking forward to it," he said.
The city administrator position has been a divisive topic in Sheridan for a while. The decision comes months after the city council passed a new ordinance to clarify the responsibilities between the mayor and city administrator.
Collins said the debate about the position did impact his decision, but he feels that the city benefits from having an administrator.
"When I've looked at what we've done in terms of strategic planning, and streamlining lining our budget process, capital planning that we've done, the economic development efforts that we made, and overall staffing business efficiencies, I think it's been remarkable. I think it's going to serve the city well moving forward," he said.
Collins said the council will examine whether or not it will name an interim administrator. The council has directed staff to start the hiring process for a new administrator.
Have a question about this story? Contact the reporter, Catherine Wheeler, at cwheel11@uwyo.edu.