Oakdale appoints police chief Jerry Romar as city manager

Oakdale City Council voted 4-0 at a special meeting to appoint Oakdale Police Chief Jerry Romar as the city’s permanent city manager and to approve his employment agreement.

Tom, a city staff member who presented the item, told the council the appointment followed “an exhaustive nationwide search” and that negotiations over an employment agreement had been completed. Tom said there was no environmental impact and that the initial compensation in the contract will be lower than the previous city manager; the agreement was included as an attachment to the agenda.

A council member moved to approve the appointment and another council member seconded; a roll-call vote recorded Council member Kettering, Mayor Pro Tem Smith, Council member Gilbert and Mayor Barrios voting yes, and the motion passed 4-0. The council then returned to closed session.

Jerry Romar, identified in the presentation as Oakdale’s police chief, thanked the council after the vote, saying, “No. I just like to thank the council for selecting me as your city manager. I’m not gonna extend it out as long as, council member Smith wants me to. So I’ll keep it a little bit shorter. But, the last few months have been, challenging and fun.”

The agenda packet included the signed employment agreement as the implementing document; staff characterized no immediate financial or environmental impacts and said initial compensation would be lower than the prior city manager’s, though the packet did not specify an exact salary in the portions of the transcript provided. The council characterized the meeting as a special session for the single personnel item.