The Mission City Council again took no action Tuesday on selecting a city manager. The city has not had a permanent city manager for more than a year. In August, the council voted to start a search led by its law firm, which drew nine applications.
The council had hoped to hold a first round of interviews by Oct. 3, but it fell behind that schedule and has not yet interviewed anyone. The city has said scheduling issues, and at one point not having all council members present, have delayed setting interviews. Mayor Norie Gonzalez Garza said Tuesday that a council member stepped out of the meeting for a time, so the council did not discuss the search.
Garza said council members have reviewed the applications and that they have good qualities, but she was not sure the city's ideal candidate is among them. The council does not have to choose from those nine and could seek more applicants or change how it conducts the search. Separately, the Mission Economic Development Corporation recently launched a search for its next chief executive officer, led by Altiva Management Group, an Edinburg consultant. Garza said she was impressed by that firm's process and may hire it, or a similar firm, to help the city.