By Karen Gleason
The 830 Times
City council members took no action during Tuesday’s regular meeting relating to the evaluation or employment of Interim City Manager Manuel Chavez.
The “deliberation of the search, appointment, employment, evaluation, reassignment, duties, discipline or dismissal of the city manager” was one of nine items on the agenda for the council’s closed-door, executive session near the end of the meeting.
Early in the meeting, one city administrator, Scot Carcasi, praised Chavez’s leadership in a statement he made during the citizen comments portion of the meeting.
Carcasi began his remarks to the council with a quote from Theodore Roosevelt: “‘It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust, sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs, who comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming, but who actually does strive to do deeds, who knows great enthusiasms, great devotions, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement and who at worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who never know victory or defeat.’”
Carcasi then said he wanted to share with the council “the five characteristics that a leader should possess to inspire confidence in their leadership abilities,” which he said was taken from Arden University.
“Decisiveness, the ability to make decisions, particularly when under pressure.
Trustworthiness; presenting yourself as a credible leader who is always transparent and equitable. Empowerment of others. You feel as though you need to be perceived as an expert in all areas, but your employees are your employees for a reason. They’re experts in their respective fields, and as a leader, it’s important to trust that they will deliver.
“Clear communication. A strong leader should use clear communication to ensure that everyone on your team or in your organization understands what they should be aiming for, as well as using language to motivate and inspire their employees to reach their full potential for their own benefit, as well as the organization’s.
“Resilience. A great leader must always be prepared to get back up every time they get knocked down. Being in a position of authority does not come without its challenges, so it’s crucial not to dwell on short-term failures and instead focus on the learnings you can take away for future reference,” Carcasi said.
Carcasi directed his final statement to Chavez: “Mr. Chavez, thanks for being a leader.”
After the council went through the business items on its agenda, City Secretary Mari Acosta read the items to be discussed in the council’s executive session, one of which dealt with considerations of the city manager’s employment.After Acosta finished reading the heading of the agenda item dealing with the city manager, Chavez interjected, saying, “Mayor, city council, I believe my evaluation is included (in this item), and so I’m requesting an open-session discussion.”
The council then went into executive session and remained there for slightly longer than two hours.
When the council returned to the dais, Arreola announced no action had been taken during closed session.
Less than a minute later, Arreola adjourned the meeting.
The writer can be reached at delriomagnoliafan@gmail.com
