Charter draft clarified to allow city-manager succession plan and limit acting-manager powers

Councilors and staff spent a lengthy block of the session clarifying how the city will handle temporary absences, disability, and vacancies in the city-manager position. Counsel and the manager warned against locking succession order by name in the charter and instead recommended an office-based succession plan adopted by council resolution or maintained as a manager-prepared memorandum that the council receives annually.

Missy and others argued the charter should not micro-manage temporary delegations of authority; instead, the city manager should be authorized to designate an acting city manager for absences while preserving guardrails. The council discussed that the acting city manager should "not be entitled to the removal protections afforded to the city manager," and that acting authority should generally be limited to day-to-day operations and should exclude hiring or termination of personnel without council approval. "An acting city manager has all powers and duties of the city manager with the exception of the hiring or termination of personnel, which requires council approval," counsel suggested during the discussion.

Council favored allowing the city manager to make short-term designations without council action while creating a standing resolution or procedure that staff would update periodically. Staff said they would draft clear, office-based succession language and a suggested resolution to keep the charter concise while ensuring operational continuity.