A group of about a dozen Riverside residents voiced their thoughts about what the city should look for in a new city manager at a Wednesday forum.
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“[The city manager] works for the public, so you gotta get the public’s opinion of what’s happening in the city,” Frank Yost, a 54-year resident of Ward 5, said at the event. “People came up with some comments I’ve never heard before, but they’re good. It’s good to let [the next city manager] answer to those questions.”
Recruitment firm Jacob Green and Associates held the in-person survey event October 21 at the Riverside Municipal Airport on behalf of the city and asked attendees a series of questions to help create a candidate profile that would guide the search. The city is also collecting responses through an online community survey until 5 p.m. October 23.
Residents told the firm’s staff they wanted the next city hall leader to have established roots in the region, experience with managing large cities and a track record of ethical governance. After a city manager is selected, the residents said that person should focus on the basics before taking on bigger projects.
Steve Mermell, a senior advisor for the firm who led the community discussion, said his team planned to use the feedback as an outline for the search. The next step in the process, he said, would be to proactively reach out to candidates who they believe fit the description and encourage them to apply for the position.
“Some of the best candidates are people who already have a job and probably aren’t thinking of leaving their job,” Mermell said. “What people at the city manager level want, is they want to have a challenge.”
Mermell said the firm has several former city managers on the team, including him, which he believed would allow them to identify the best fit for Riverside.
That recruitment and hiring process could take between three to six months, though Mermell said it could take longer due to the holiday season. Despite a potential delay, he said he expected the city to have a new city manager within the first few months of the coming year. For comparison, it took the city about seven months to recruit its first inspector general, a position that was filled earlier this month.
“I appreciate [the Riverside City Council for] at least making an effort, and hopefully they’ll listen to some of the comments today and what they hear from the surveys and find a city manager that can stay for more than three to four years,” Jason Hunter, a resident and former city employee-turned-whistleblower, said at the forum. “I hope the best for the next city manager, and I hope the best for the council, and I hope they’ve learned something from the most recent departures.”
The search for a new head city hall administrator comes months after the resignation of its previous city manager Mike Futrell, who left the role amid rising tensions between his spouse and the Riverside City Council, a matter that was settled the same day as his resignation, and ahead of a scheduled performance review.
Shortly after his departure, an internal investigation released via a public records request documented evidence that Futrell violated city policy and state law by contributing to or creating a hostile work environment and dismissing anonymous complaints. Futrell denied the investigation’s findings and said the report did not influence his decision to resign in a statement released at the time.
The city has since hired interim City Manager Tom Hatch while the search continues for a permanent replacement.
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