Eagle Pass City Council to Tackle City Manager Selection Process 18 Months Later
By: Ricardo E. Calderon, Eagle Pass Business Journal, Inc., Copyright 2024
The City of Eagle Pass, Texas City Council has scheduled its first regular meeting of 2024 on Tuesday, January 2, 2024, at 5:30 p.m. at City Council Chambers, 100 S. Monroe Street in Eagle Pass and will finally tackle the selection process of a new City Manager after 18 months following the resignation of former City Manager George Antuna on August 9, 2022, according to the City Council Agenda Item No. 10 posted on Thursday, December 28, 2023.
Agenda Item No. 10 states: Executive Session…Discussion of Personnel-Evaluation of candidates’ resumes submitted for City Manager position and interviews of selected candidates; determination of extension or closure of application deadline; and return to open session for possible action.
No previous City Council has taken so long to address the selection of a City Manager than the current council, leaving the City of Eagle Pass to be managed and guided during a critical period of growth and challenges facing the community by an interim City Manager for up to 18 months to date.
Assistant City Manager Ivan Morua was tapped by City Council to assume the role of Interim City Manager on August 9, 2022 upon the sudden resignation of former City Manager George Antuna following an Executive Session. Morua accepted the responsibility to become Interim City Manager on August 9, 2022 for the second time in his career during the past six years. He previously served as Interim City Manager for 15 months from January 2, 2018 to March 4, 2019 following the resignation of then City Manager Arturo B. Rodriguez on December 28, 20017 until George Antuna was hired on January 16, 2019.
Over 42 individuals submitted applications for the vacant City Manager position during the past 18 months, many with outstanding credentials and experience. Interim City Manager Ivan Morua as of December 15, 2023 had not applied for the vacant City Manager position. It is unknown as of press time if Morua has changed his mind.
The City of Eagle Pass is currently in a key period in its development and growth that requires a person that has an education, leadership skills, government experience, legislative relations, community planning and development, economic development experience, master plan knowledge, and management experience as its next City Manager.
The real question City voters want to know is if the City Council will select the best qualified person for the vacant position of City Manager and allow that individual to manage the affairs of the municipality without micromanagement by City Council members, or, select an individual whom they believe they can control for their personal or political interests.
The City of Eagle Pass has a fiscal year 2023-2024 budget of $59 million and over 300 employees with a growing population base. The City also is facing significant challenges like the undocumented immigrant crisis on the southern United States-Mexico border, the militarization of the U. S.-Mexico border, the fast approaching exponential growth and economic development of the community through international trade, improvement of public infrastructure and planning, development and expansion of city, county, state, and federal roads and highways to develop efficient means of transportation for commerce and people, improve neighborhoods and quality of life, and expand educational and job opportunities for all in the community.
In addition, City Council currently has on its agenda two major projects that it seeks to establish and proceed with that will require the creation and establishment of two distinct city-owned legal entities, the City of Eagle Pass Public Improvement District No. 1 (PID) and the City of Eagle Pass Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone (TIRZ), for purposes of issuing up to $75 million in bonds (PID) and another $39 million in bonds (TIRZ) for the use and benefit of financing public infrastructure improvements at a private industrial park currently located outside the city limits. City Council seeks to fast-track these two projects without the benefit of having done an economic and legal analysis of these two projects and allowing the City voters an opportunity to express their opinion in a legal vote referendum in a May 2024 City election.
City voters have questioned and cautioned the City Council’s fast approval of these two city-owned bond issuing entities and projects when they have taken 18 months to address the City Manager selection process, but these citizens’ concerns have not been heeded by City Council. City Council may very well establish a legal precedent that will provide a city-financed mechanism of future private real estate developments.
The City Council is composed of Mayor Rolando Salinas, Jr., Mayor Pro-Tem William “Billy” Davis, and City Council members Monica J. Cruz, Mario E. Garcia, and Elias Diaz.
Furthermore, the City Council will also address at the January 2, 2024 regular meeting Agenda Item No. 6 calling for the “consideration and possible approval of 100 hours vacation pay to Interim City Manager Ivan Morua.”
