City Council to mull adding new City department aimed at overseeing multiple responsibilities

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (KQTV) -- The St. Joseph City Council is considering an ordinance to create a new General Services Department, which will coordinate, oversee and manage key municipal functions.

Currently, functions like capital project management, engineering, procurement and contracting, fleet operations, facilities and building maintenance and risk management are spread across several departments.

According to a news release from the City, the functions have become more complex and would benefit from stronger and clearer coordination and accountability.

The new department would bring together all of the aforementioned responsibilities in one place. It will focus on quality work, consistent project monitoring, smart contracting that gets the most for City dollars and taking care of assets over the long term.

The change continues efforts started in 2025 to streamline the City's processes, according to the release.

If approved, General Services would serve all City departments from a central office and be led by a full-time director who reports to the city manager and oversees projects and asset management.

The department will start with 13 employees reassigned from several departments and will initially be led by Laurie Thompson, the current human resources programs and risk manager, to ensure a smooth transition.

The City Code will be updated over time as more functions move into the new department.

The City said the General Services Department will support its strategic plan by helping maintain and improve assets, while strengthening teamwork across departments.

City Council will vote on the proposed ordinance at its Monday, Feb. 2 meeting. If approved, Thompson's salary as the department's director will be $100,001.