Can’t We Do Better?

This item appeared in the Whispers column of this week’s El Paso Inc.:

So, who’s next?

As you know, the city is in need of a new city manager, since Tommy Gonzalez was given 120-day notice of his termination last week by City Council.

Who do you think would be a good candidate for the job, as an interim or permanent hire? Positions like these are often filled after nationwide searches by headhunter firms, but we like to think there are plenty of local people ready to handle the job.

Por ejemplo, Sylvia Borunda Firth is one name that comes to mind. She was city attorney for six years and is now in private practice. Or current city attorney, Karla Nieman.

Then there’s Cary Westin, who was senior deputy city manager until he retired recently. Or Tracey Jerome, the current senior deputy city manager, who’s been with the city since 2015.

And Sam Rodriguez, a professional engineer who’s the city’s chief operations officer. Or Mike Martinez who was city manager of Sunland Park for two years.

Right. What we need is more of the same people who got us into this position in the first place.

Fish rots from the head down.