Northfield's departing city administrator says he'll drop a demand for severance pay and agree not to sue the city -- but only if the mayor apologizes to him for behavior that he says fueled his decision to leave.

In a heated discussion Monday night, the Northfield City Council voted 5-1 to approve a potential separation agreement with Administrator Al Roder that asks Mayor Lee Lansing to give him a written apology by Friday, Roder's last day at work. But the council can't force the mayor to write the letter, and Lansing, who cast the sole dissenting vote, said Tuesday that he hadn't decided whether he would comply.

In a resignation letter that Roder wrote in June, when he accepted a similar job in Norfolk, Neb., he said he had endured a frivolous lawsuit, micromanagement and baseless accusations of wrongdoing from Lansing.

Northfield's mayor and administrator have had a rocky relationship for well over a year. In December, a city-hired investigator found that Lansing had abused his power by trying to influence Roder and other city leaders to further his family's business interests. Last fall, the mayor filed a lawsuit -- which was later dropped -- against Roder, the city and three council members over discussions of Lansing family property.

Roder has also been linked to an ongoing criminal investigation of City Hall business that was begun by former Northfield Police Chief Gary Smith, then handed over to the Goodhue County attorney's office.

Roder's employment contract calls for paying him six months' salary, which would be about $55,000, if he's terminated, but not if he leaves voluntarily. But Roder told the city in his initial request for severance pay that the mayor's "aggressive and abusive treatment" amounted to an effort to force him out.

In negotiations with the city this month, he said he'd settle for a written apology from Lansing. City Council members who helped craft the deal, which allows Roder to approve the final draft of the apology, said they think it could protect the city from legal expenses.

"We believe there is a possibility that Mr. Roder could file a lawsuit against the city either now or sometime in the future," Council Member Jim Pokorney, who helped negotiate the potential agreement, said in a July 19 letter to the mayor. "Even if the lawsuit is frivolous, the cost to the city could be substantial."

If Lansing does not write the letter, the council could consider a backup deal that would give Roder $10,000, plus $25,000 if the results of the Goodhue County investigation exonerate him, said Council Member Kris Vohs.

Lansing said he'd like to resolve the issue with Roder, but called the agreement vague and the council's decision unfair. "I don't think it's appropriate to be put in a box," he said Tuesday.

Roder would not say Tuesday whether he plans to sue the city, or, if so, on what grounds. He said he would accept the backup cash agreement, but asked for an apology instead because "I felt that was the most prudent way to move the city forward and really get to the crux of the issue of why I felt like I had to leave."

Sarah Lemagie • 952-882-9016