Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

(Lamar, Colorado; September 30, 2025) The Lamar City Council voted unanimously to confirm Mitchel Hammes as Lamar’s next City Administrator at a Special Meeting on Monday, September 29, 2025. Hammes was one of three finalists that visited Lamar last week for meetings, tours, and a community meet & greet. He brings substantial technical municipal administration experience, conservative fiscal practices, and proven community engagement strategies to the community.

"We are excited to welcome Mitch Hammes as Lamar’s new City Administrator. Based on feedback from our Council, staff, and community members, Mitch emerged as the top choice,” commented Mayor Kirk Crespin. “We believe that his leadership experience in larger communities will serve him well in this new role, and we look forward to working with him as we continue building a strong future for Lamar."   

His background, education, and passion are ideally suited for Lamar’s City Administrator position, as he is skilled at building collaborative partnerships with internal and external stakeholders. Hammes possesses a strong track record of driving improvements and fostering effective working relationships with staff, officials, and the public. He has excelled at developing creative solutions to complex challenges, embracing thoughtful risk-taking while upholding discretion, integrity, fairness, and diplomacy.

With extensive experience in local government and a strong commitment to strategic leadership, his solutions-oriented approach aligns seamlessly with the demands of the city administrator role. Mitch consistently fosters environments that empower staff and drive impactful initiatives for the organization and the community, guided by a leadership philosophy centered on "People, Process, and Public Impact."

Hammes has owned a successful code enforcement consulting business since 2022 and became Arapahoe County’s Voter Services Manager in August, 2024, supervising the voter services team to ensure integrity and accuracy of voter registration and voter roles. As the Neighborhood Services Manager for the City of Colorado Springs for eight years, he gained substantial experience representing the city at public meetings, engaging diverse community representatives, and delivering compelling presentations before City Council, boards, commissions, and the media. In this role, he led strategy development and operations oversight of the City’s housing, zoning, property maintenance, code enforcement, and homeless prevention and response programs, managing an annual budget of $4.3 M. During that time, he grew his team from 15 to 37 by continually focusing on maximizing return on investment and value to the City.

“I want to thank Mayor Crespin and entire City Council for their trust and confidence in me. Throughout the interviews, tours, and interactions with community members and City staff, I was impressed with the passion, excitement, and engagement everyone expressed,” stated Hammes.  “My focus from day one will be on transparency, collaboration, and capitalizing on the immense opportunities before us. I look forward to immersing myself in Lamar and meeting all the tremendous people that make this such a great place. Once I am in the role, I’ll be announcing specific public office hours and community forums.  Please look for those in the City’s platforms shortly after my first day.”

Hammes’ first day at the City of Lamar will be October 27.