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Bay City commission names Rick Haymon preferred city manager candidate in 5–4 vote
Summary
After second-round interviews, the Bay City Commission voted 5–4 on June 18 to designate longtime area resident Rick Haymon as its preferred city manager candidate and authorized staff and the city attorney to draft an employment agreement; any offer will be conditioned on background checks.
The Bay City Commission voted 5–4 on June 18 to name Rick Haymon its preferred candidate for city manager and authorized the city manager’s and city attorney’s offices to work with him on a draft employment agreement, with any offer conditioned on background checks and pre-employment screening.
Haymon, a longtime resident who told the commission “Bay City is home. My wife and I raised our family here,” was one of two finalists interviewed in the special session. He emphasized neighborhood equity, infrastructure priorities and local housing initiatives, telling commissioners he reviewed Bay City’s transportation asset management plan and that many local streets are in poor condition. Haymon recommended a mix of data-driven prioritization, grant readiness and coordinated projects with neighboring jurisdictions to make limited funds go further.
The other finalist, Brian Chapman, framed his candidacy around operational experience. Chapman described multi-city experience as a city manager and said he would spend the first 90 days meeting one-on-one with commissioners, department heads and staff, and conducting ride-alongs to learn the organization before proposing policies.
Commissioners diverged on which candidate best matched the city’s immediate needs. Supporters of Haymon cited his local ties and familiarity with Bay City priorities including roads and the bridge partnership; supporters of Chapman cited his deep city-manager resume and budget and operational experience. After public comment and a round-robin discussion among commissioners, Commissioner Dit moved to name Haymon the preferred candidate and Chapman the secondary candidate; Commissioner Tenny seconded the motion.
The roll-call vote was: Doyle—yes; Tenny—yes; Dit—yes; Runberg—yes; Charl—yes; Cubitt—no; Kley—no; Zenady—no; Morris—no. With five yes votes and four no votes, the motion passed.
Next steps: the city manager’s and city attorney’s offices were authorized to negotiate a draft employment agreement with Haymon; if Haymon is unavailable or declines, staff were authorized to pursue Chapman as the alternate. Any final offer remains subject to the city’s standard background checks and pre-employment screening.
The commission concluded the special meeting after the vote.
