The last time Manteca hired an outside company to fill the post of city manager, things didn’t go so well.
It was 2016. And the candidate the council ultimately hired based on that research – Elena Reyes – actually only worked 19 weeks before the elected leaders withdrew her from circulation. Reyes and the council parted ways after 38 weeks, including 19 weeks when she was paid for not cooperating with her departure with a check for $ 245,000 to buy out her contract.
Tim Ogden was then hired in August 2017 from the short list of candidates the consultant picked from among the applicants he had received. Ogden ran the town for two and a half years. During this time he set the deal that landed Great Wolf, had two consecutive balanced budgets, and worked out a deal to split the property tax on an annexation that was, among other things, cheaper for the city than previous annexations.
But a tour of the city, beginning with Ben Cantu being elected mayor, kicked off not only Ogden, who now holds a similar position in Brentwood, but every other department head. Ogden had also bought out his contract.
The city is currently run by an interim city administrator in the form of retired Modesto Police Chief Michael Harden, with a senior management team that lacks anyone who has been in the city in their current position or, in some cases, for a year.
The council, who had been in Cantu’s tenure for less than a year, instead of asking then HR manager Miranda Lutzow to seek suggestions for a consultant to conduct external recruitment, instead appointed her city administrator.
Lutzow resigned abruptly in February after replacing most of the senior management team and creating new departments and filling positions. While Lutzow didn’t receive a severance package when she left on her own, she has since filed a lawsuit against the city. The council dismissed the lawsuit, which as a legal precursor must be filed in order to sue a California city.
When the city council meets at 7:00 p.m. tonight at the Civic Center, 1001 W. Center St., it will consider hiring Tripepi Smith & Associates to do the recruiting for a city manager and finance director.
The company has already successfully placed four of the current department heads for the city of Manteca.
Both searches cost about $ 33,000 if the contract is made with a condition that the amount does not exceed $ 40,000.
Finding the city manager is expected to take 16 to 18 weeks, while finding a finance director is expected to take 12 to 14 weeks.
It is not clear if the city manager is hired first and then that person hires the finance director.
In the past, city guides have postponed permanent hires for department heads until they have a city manager who is non-acting or temporary and will hold their position permanently – however long that may be.
City administrators hire their management team as they run the city on a daily basis. The city council directly hires the city administrator and city attorney as these are the only two positions that report directly to them.
For this reason, the search for a permanent police chief has been discontinued. The city also needs a permanent fire chief.
To contact Dennis Wyatt, email [email protected]
Comments are closed.