Davenport City Administrator Craig Malin - already the longest-serving administrator in the city's history - says he will likely sign a new contract extending his employment through 2011.

Aldermen and the administrator have been holding talks through Tom Warner, the city's corporate counsel, intermittently over the past few weeks to discuss his contract, which will include a reduced severance package and no pay increase, Malin said.

"There will be no monetary increase, and the severance is substantially reduced in essentially every separation scenario," he said.

The severance package in Malin's current contract - which expires Dec. 15, 2009 - was a source of contention with the previous council that approved it. It calls for him to receive one year's salary - currently $168,809 - plus sick leave, vacation and other benefits as well as pension contribution.

The contract, a draft of which was going out to aldermen Thursday for inclusion in Wednesday's Finance Committee meeting - reduces potential severance payments under multiple scenarios and includes "good cause" termination language, Warner said.

"One thing that was done, which any responsible party would do, is look at comparables with other cities," said Alderman Ian Frink, At Large, chairman of the Finance Committee. "What we are going to be looking at is in the ballpark with what other places offer. Everyone knows the contract he had was a hybrid and was a little bit different. This is something that is more standard in the industry."

The contract could be approved at the July 8 regular City Council meeting, if it is approved by the Finance Committee next week.

Even the two aldermen remaining on the council who voted in favor of firing Malin in April 2007 - Ray Ambrose, 4th Ward, and Bill Lynn, 5th Ward - said they are content to see Malin's tenure extended. The 2007 situation - in which Malin avoided termination by a 5-4 vote - centered on his attempt to hire Senior District Judge John Nahra as the new corporate counsel.

"I'm not going to talk too much about the contract and the changes, but what I will say is this council and mayor, working with the professional staff, have done an outstanding job," Ambrose said. "Craig's been around as the longest-serving administrator we've had, and we can all improve our performance, whether it's as a father and husband or a city administrator. And I think things are going very well for the city of Davenport."

Malin, 46, will hit his eight-year anniversary as administrator on Aug. 28. Previously, the longest tenure of a Davenport administrator was just more than seven years.

The proposed contract is for one year and is renewable each year with a six-month notice of nonrenewal. The current notice of nonrenewal is 12 months, meaning the city would be on the hook for severance payments if it doesn't give Malin one year's advance notice his contract will be allowed to expire.

Lynn said he thinks things have worked out well.

"I think this mayor and council have pretty well taken control of things and a lot different tone has been set," he said. "I think there were some real good improvements made (in the contract) that are more in line with what other cities have in place."