Turlock - again - is looking for someone to lead the city

For the second time in less than six months, Turlock is actively seeking someone to lead the city.

Council members Tuesday night voted to approve a contract with Peckham and McKenney Inc., a Roseville-based executive search firm, to recruit for a new city manager.

The top spot in Stanislaus County’s second-largest city has been a contentious position since Gary Hampton left the job last July, six weeks before he planned to retire.

Hampton in November filed a claim against the city, asserting that Mayor Gary Soiseth, City Attorney Phaedra Norton and Councilman Matthew Jacob bullied him and other staff members, forcing his early retirement. Hampton said the three tried to pressure him to use his influence to help Norton get the appointment to succeed him.

Soiseth and Norton denied the claims in interviews with The Bee. In an email, Jacob called Hampton’s version “blatantly false.”

In the meantime, the city spent $13,000 on a search for a new city manager, but opted to start over in October when council members could not agree. Norton, who recently returned from a weeks-long absence she described only as “personal,” said in early January that she no longer is a candidate for the job.

On Tuesday, council members conducted a lengthy discussion of the upcoming search before deciding on a 4-1 vote (Councilwoman Amy Bublak dissented) to go with Peckham, which bid $26,000 for the job. Council members said they chose Peckham partly because its timeline is shorter and they want to get the position filled quickly. Peckham estimates 14 weeks until a new city manager is hired; some of the other firms that sent proposals to the city estimated the effort to take as long as 20 weeks.

Money for the contract will come from savings the city has reaped from not having a city manager. Fire Chief Robert Talloni, who is not an applicant for the position, has been serving as interim city manager.

This story was originally published January 10, 2018 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Turlock - again - is looking for someone to lead the city."