La Marque council directs staff to draft resolution to sever city manager after closed-session vote

La Marque — After returning from a closed executive session, the La Marque City Council voted 3–2 to direct staff to prepare a resolution to sever the city manager, following a failed effort to put the manager on a 60‑day performance probation.

The council recessed into executive session at 4:04 p.m. under cited provisions of the Texas Government Code to discuss personnel matters; it returned at 5:55 p.m. and took up actions resulting from that closed deliberation. A council member (Speaker 3) moved to present the city manager with a written 60‑day improvement plan and to separate the manager at the end of the period if specified concerns were not addressed. That motion failed on a voice vote after debate.

Council debate focused on multiple shortcomings raised by one member (Speaker 1), who said there had been persistent problems with the budget process, “inaccurate numbers,” staff supervision, the summer program, event planning and unclear accounting of donations tied to the city’s All‑America City effort. “There is a lack of communication … a lack of ownership being taken,” the council member said, arguing those issues justified a stronger response than probation.

After the failed probation motion, another council member (Speaker 4) urged a swifter course. “It is time that we just sever the umbilical cord and move on,” Speaker 4 said, and moved that staff prepare a resolution for the next meeting; that motion was seconded and passed 3–2. A member of the council’s legal or staff team (Speaker 2) told the council they would draft the resolution.

The city manager or other affected employee (Speaker 6) acknowledged the feedback and said they would consult with legal staff and prepare for the next meeting. The council discussed the average evaluation score included in the meeting materials — one page in the packet listed an overall average of 7.7 out of 10, while a separate tabulation compiled by a council member produced an average nearer 6.3–6.4; the council agreed to verify and correct the record as needed.

The meeting record shows the council used the executive‑session authority listed in the meeting announcement (Texas Government Code sections cited in the meeting: consult with attorney and several closed‑meeting subsections including personnel 551.074). No formal separation or termination took place at the meeting; the council’s action was a direction to staff to prepare a resolution for consideration at a subsequent meeting, which council members indicated is planned for Dec. 9. The meeting adjourned following that direction.

Next steps: staff/legal will draft the resolution for council consideration at the next scheduled meeting; the packet documents and a corrected evaluation average are expected to be provided in advance.