Plainview council hires Theodore Chancellor as city manager; approves cameras, park restroom and street sealcoat project

Theodore Chancellor will become Plainview's next city manager after a council vote on Feb. 20, beginning employment the first Monday in May with a starting salary of $170,000 plus standard city employee benefits.

City leaders said the hire followed an exhaustive national search and that Chancellor was selected from a strong pool of candidates. The council approved the appointment during the meeting's open session following an executive session on the city manager search that the council conducted under Texas Government Code 551.074.

Chancellor's hiring was the most consequential action taken by the council at the meeting. Council members moved quickly through several other items: the council accepted the Plainview Police Department's annual racial profiling report, approved a resolution to permit installation of automated license-plate readers in partnership with the Texas Department of Transportation, authorized the purchase and site preparation for a new restroom at Lloyd C. Woods Park, and awarded the annual sealcoat ("silco") street program to the lowest bidder.

Council discussion and votes Council Member Gary House moved the motion to hire Chancellor; the motion was seconded by Council Member Martinez and approved by the council. The mayor announced the start date will be the first Monday in May to allow for transition time.

On other items, the council accepted the Police Department's racial profiling report after a presentation by Chief Watson (see below for details). The council approved resolution R25-656, authorizing an agreement with the Texas Department of Transportation to install Flock automatic license-plate readers to notify the department when vehicles associated with criminal activity enter the city; the presentation said camera installation costs would be covered by a federal grant targeted at catalytic converter and auto-theft prevention but that the city would pay a maintenance fee of $4,800 per camera per year. The council approved a purchase of a prefabricated concrete restroom unit from CXT for Lloyd C. Woods Park for $117,001.98 (the project was budgeted at $150,000 with an additional $20,000 estimated for site prep). The council awarded the annual sealcoat program to Freeman Paving; staff described Freeman as the lowest bidder and said the work covers primary thoroughfares including Enos Street, Fourth Street in front of the golf course, and Eleventh Street from Enos to Quincy.

Votes at a glance - Hire city manager (motion: "hire Theodore Chancellor as the next city manager of Plainview with a starting salary of $170,000 plus standard city employee benefits and authorize the mayor and city attorney to take necessary actions to complete the hiring"): mover Gary House; second Martinez; outcome: approved. (Start date: first Monday in May.) - Accept Police Department Racial Profiling Report (motion to accept presentation): mover Rescon/Rascon (record shows Rascon made several motions); seconded by House; outcome: accepted. (See police-report article provenance for presentation details.) - Resolution R25-656 (agreement with Texas Department of Transportation for installation of Flock license-plate readers): mover Gary House; second Martinez; outcome: approved. City will install six cameras, with installation paid by a federal grant and a recurring maintenance fee noted in presentation at $4,800 per camera per year. - Purchase of CXT restroom for Lloyd C. Woods Park (TIPs purchase): mover Rascon; second House; outcome: approved. Purchase price presented as $117,001.98; budgeted amount $150,000; site-prep estimated $20,000. - Annual sealcoat (silco) program award to Freeman Paving (lowest bidder): mover Martinez; second Dickerson; outcome: approved. Staff presentation said the bid covered roughly 65,000 square feet on several thoroughfares; unit price noted in staff remarks as "4.15 per square yard" in the presentation.

Discussion vs. formal action - Formal actions: the council took final votes on the items listed above and authorized staff to proceed on purchases and contracts where applicable. - Discussion/direction: the license-plate reader presentation included operational examples (use in finding missing persons and stolen vehicles) and funding sources; staff noted the city's ongoing maintenance obligation. The racial profiling report presentation included analysis of traffic-stop data and the department's internal procedures (see police-report provenance). No item in this vote package was tabled or postponed.

Who spoke Speakers recorded during these items included Council Member Gary House (mover on the city-manager motion and mover on some other items), Council Member Martinez (second on several motions), Council Member Rascon (mover on the restroom purchase), Council Member Dickerson (second on the sealcoat motion), Chief Watson (Plainview Police Department, presented the racial profiling report and the license-plate reader resolution), Mr. Crosswhite (presented parks/restroom and silco items; listed in the transcript as a staff presenter), and an unnamed mayor (presiding). Theodore Chancellor was the appointee referenced in the motion; the transcript records the hire but not Chancellor's remarks during the meeting.

Why this matters Hiring a new city manager determines Plainview's executive leadership and sets administrative priorities for the coming years. The other approved items update public-safety tools, park infrastructure and routine street maintenance, each of which affects city operations and residents' daily life.

Ending Council members indicated there will be opportunities for the public and council to meet Chancellor before his start date in May. For more details about individual procurement contracts, camera locations, or the racial profiling report, see the provenance segments attached to this article.