The timeline for Dallas hiring for its top job – might be speeding up soon. The city has been without a permanent city manager since May – a position responsible for hiring Dallas’ next police chief, too. NBC 5’s David Goins as an update.
The timeline for Dallas's hiring for its top job might be about to speed up.
The city has been without a permanent city manager since May, a position responsible for hiring Dallas’ next police chief too.
Three councilmembers signed a memo Friday, obtained by NBC 5, triggering the 15-member Dallas City Council to meet Monday at 9 a.m.
The goal is to speed up a city manager search many on council feel has taken too long since former city manager T.C. Broadnax announced his resignation In February.
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The memo was signed by councilmembers Paula Blackmon, Jaynie Schultz and Gay Donnell Willis.
They described the hiring process so far as "loose and nontransparent" in a joint statement.
"This search has dragged on for nearly a year with little to no clarity regarding next steps," the statement read.
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Willis spoke to NBC-5 and said the 13,000 employees at Dallas City Hall deserve the sense of stability and direction the council provides in hiring a new city manager.
“It just seemed like there needs to be more swift action taken,” Willis told NBC 5. “This is probably one of the most important jobs a council person can be part of, is hiring the city's CEO.”
The search process for the next city manager started back in August.
Mayor pro tem Tennell Atkins chairs the committee that hired a consultant to help with a national search.
Four semifinalist names became public in mid-November and includes Dallas’ current interim city manager Kim Tolbert.
Atkins said the process of looking at each semifinalist was just starting during Thursday’s committee meeting.
“The committee has not said what we thought because we have not reviewed it,” Atkins said Thursday.
Atkins didn’t respond to calls or texts about his colleagues deciding to bring the city manager hiring to the full council four hours before his own committee is set to meet on Monday.
“My understanding is that by meeting Monday morning, it may negate the meeting in the afternoon,” Willis said.
The voting agenda calls for the city council to interview four semifinalists, "discuss qualifications and deliberate the appointment of the city manager."
“We need to define when that public engagement can take place, get it on schedule so that the public knows and can participate, and then be able to move forward with finalists and hire in January,” Willis said.
