Council adopts timeline for city manager evaluation and opens public comment period

The council discussed and approved a timeline for the city manager performance evaluation process on Aug. 4. City Manager John Williams said the memorandum describing the process had been prepared in July but was posted to the public meetings page only on the meeting day; council members agreed to proceed despite the late posting.

Under the adopted timeline, public and anonymous staff comment will be accepted beginning Aug. 5; those comments will be compiled and sent to council on Sept. 2. The manager’s self-evaluation is scheduled for Sept. 12, individual council evaluations are due Sept. 26, and a conclusion of the process will occur in October with an executive session followed by a public meeting to report action.

Nut graf: council refined the questionnaire and process to separate evaluation of the organization from evaluation of the manager: a councilor proposed (and council accepted) adding a separate section for comments about the state of the city organization so that the manager would not be held responsible for matters outside their control. Council also requested the manager be given an opportunity to provide feedback on council practices that would set him up for success.

The mayor and staff noted staff comments will be collected anonymously and that additional public comment may be submitted through the advertised comment portal. Tom Meyer, a public commenter, used the public-comment period to criticize the city manager’s handling of the covered pickleball structure project and indicated he would submit more detailed material through the evaluation's public comment channel.

Ending: Staff will open the public comment forum as scheduled and compile comments for council consideration; councilors asked staff to publicize the schedule and ensure the separate “state of the city” comments box is available for reviewers.