Let me tell you how the City Manager Tommy Gonzalez saga is going to end.
The City will buy Mr. Gonzalez out of his contract. They’ll say that they’re avoiding the time and expense of a lawsuit. Remember, those things didn’t bother them when they were fighting to avoid making the former members of City Council reveal their emails.
Both sides will agree to not discuss the settlement, or anything else about Mr. Gonzalez tenure as City Manager. Also, Mr. Gonzalez will agree to not tell where the bodies are buried, nor which skeletons are in which closet, nor to reveal any details about the financial state of the City.
City Council will dislocate their shoulders patting themselves on their backs. The El Paso Times will pin a medal to its chest, and huff and puff about what stalwart defenders of good government they are. And then they’ll turn off their klieg lights and go back to not reporting anything that might afflict the comfortable.
I hope I didn’t ruin the drama for you.
I think you have got it down pretty close. Meanwhile, Gonzalez will walk away with enough money to retire very, very early, should he wish that. Then, Council will hire yet another outside firm to conduct a “nationwide” search for yet another person of similar background and make up. Then, they will offer that person even more money than what we already overpaid the latest CM. New Councils will come and go. More and more of our hard earned dollars will leave town. Eventually, the City will have to declare bankruptcy, and then, we’ll start all over again. I still say we need to go back to a strong Mayor form of government, and just cancel (if that is possible) whatever remains of the very poorly designed QoL projects, and put somebody to work on fixing our streets!