Turlock council to vote on hiring away Ceres city manager. Mayor criticizes process
Turlock’s City Council will vote Tuesday whether to hire a new city manager, a position with a high turnover rate that has been held by five people on either a permanent or interim basis since 2015.
The city posted a proposed contract on its website Thursday, showing the council may offer a $220,000 annual salary to Toby Wells, who currently works as the city manager for Ceres.
Wells, a Turlock resident, has been manager of the smaller neighboring city since 2014 and makes $185,000 a year, according to Ceres documents. Offering the position to someone who works in the region isn’t unusual, said city attorney Doug White, who added that Wells knows the community. White’s firm also provides city attorney services for Ceres.
Turlock Mayor Amy Bublak criticized the process. “I’m just questioning why we’re going so fast, and it’s not about Mr. Wells,” she said. “It’s about why are we doing this so quickly that we don’t just be public and let people apply, do a new search and get the biggest grouping of people that want to do it.”
Wells previously applied for the position two years ago, White said, and went through an extensive interview process before Turlock instead hired Robert Lawton from the pool of about 35 applicants. His name was one of several discussed after Lawton resigned in August 2019, White said.
“He raised his family there, so you get the added benefit of somebody who is pretty invested in the community, knows it really well and doesn’t have to kind of get up to speed on who’s who and what matters,” White said of Wells’ proposed hiring.
Bublak said the city should have opened a new public search. Bublak added she can’t say whether Wells is the right person for the job now because she hasn’t been able to compare him to current applicants.
The council interviewed Wells during a closed session on Presidents’ Day while City Hall was closed, the mayor noted.
Wells declined to comment until the council votes on his contract next week. If appointed, White said Wells could start working for Turlock in mid-April after giving Ceres a 30-day notice.
Other cases of Stanislaus County cities hiring away nearby city managers include Oakdale selecting Bryan Whitemyer for the role while he held the same job in Hughson, according to the city’s website. Riverbank also hired Sean Scully for city manager while he worked that role for Gustine in Merced County.
Interim City Manager Michael Cooke has filled in as Turlock’s chief administrative officer since Lawton’s resignation after about 13 months on the job. Before Lawton, then-Fire Department Chief Robert Talloni temporarily filled the position for a year after former City Manager Gary Hampton retired in July 2017. Prior to Hampton’s appointment, Cooke served a previous interim stint after City Manager Roy Wasden retired in December 2015.
Turlock paid its previous city manager, Lawton, about $216,000 a year.
Before Ceres appointed Wells as its city manager six years ago, he worked as that city’s engineer and public works director.
This story was originally published March 7, 2020 at 5:00 AM.
