By Shawn Raymundo
The search for a new city manager continues as councilors are scheduled to meet in closed-door talks on Wednesday evening, Jan. 8, so they could discuss the installation of an interim chief executive to temporarily run the city.
“We’re going to work as quickly as we can to find an interim city manager,” Mayor Dan Bane told San Clemente Times this week, later adding: “It’s going to be within the purview of the whole council to approve any contract for an interim.”
According to Bane, the purpose of the special closed-door session is to deliberate over the process related to selecting an interim city manager and talk about potential applicants.
“There have been folks who have expressed interest,” Bane said of possible candidates willing to take on the interim role while he searches for a permanent replacement to current City Manager James Makshanoff.
Makshanoff’s last day with the city of San Clemente is scheduled for Jan. 17. Last month, he submitted his resignation to the council, announcing that he’d been selected by the city of Pomona and appointed by its city council to be its new city manager starting on Jan. 21.
During the San Clemente City Council’s late December meeting, Bane was given the authority to contract a recruitment firm to lead the search for a new city manager. Bane said on Tuesday, Jan. 7, that he’s reached out to a few firms, but has not made a definite decision yet.
As for an estimated timeline of securing a new city manager, Bane said that while he’s hoping to get it done quickly, he noted that it could take anywhere from a couple of months to possibly six months, based on what he’s seen from other cities.
Bane said he’s hopeful that he and his fellow councilmembers can get someone approved for the interim role during their upcoming meeting on Jan. 21.
Shawn Raymundo
Shawn Raymundo is the city editor for the San Clemente Times. He graduated from Arizona State University with a bachelor’s degree in Global Studies. Before joining Picket Fence Media, he worked as the government accountability reporter for the Pacific Daily News in the U.S. territory of Guam. Follow him on Twitter @ShawnzyTsunami and follow San Clemente Times @SCTimesNews.
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