West Valley cities churn through their managers

Average tenure is seven years, but few in the West Valley reach that. Surprise’s will be latest to leave.

The average tenure of a city manager in the United States is just more than seven years, but hardly any West Valley cities have top administrators who meet that mark.

Surprise had celebrated its threeyear anniversary with current City Manager Chris Hillman in March only to see him named as the top candidate for the post in Irving, Texas, last month.

Hillman had been the city’s longestserving city manager since 2008, but he is following a pattern in the West Valley of city managers leaving well before hitting the nationwide average calculated by the International City/ County Management Association.

Just three cities — Litchfield Park, Peoria and Tolleson — have had no citymanager turnover in the past five years. And only Litchfield Park has a city manager who has been in his position for nearly a decade.

Variety of reasons

Surprise has had more city managers than any other city in the West Valley over the past decade. The six people in the post since 2000 have left for a variety of reasons, including retirement and getting fired. Other top administrators in the region have left for better opportunities with more responsibility or more pay.

Avondale City Manager Charles McClendon became city manager of Cathedral City, Calif., in March. He said that he saw it as a professional opportunity that he didn’t want to pass up. His move resulted in just a $600 per year pay increase.

Stability in a city’s top job can be helpful but doesn’t always have a huge impact on what residents see in terms of services, said George Pettit, a professor of practice at Arizona State University’s School of Public Affairs and former Gilbert town manager.

The politics of a council can greatly affect how often new administrators are selected, he said.

“How do you install political stability when you have a council with differences? It can be challenging to build consensus,” Pettit said.

Pettit added that managers leave or

“How do you install political stability when you have a council with differences?”

ASU prof and former Gilbert town manager stay in their posts for any number of reasons, the same way professionals in other industries may leave for what they perceive is a better opportunity.

Hillman said his reason for applying for the Irving position was greater opportunity for himself professionally and personally for his family.

It is expected that Hillman will earn more in Texas than in Surprise. His current salary is $189,000, but Irving’s last permanent city manager made $246,000 in 2013, according to local news reports.

Hillman said a trip to Irving in 1988 to visit a friend left a lasting impression on him as a college student.

“I was amazed at the city of Irving and how they seemed to have planned the city for the next 30 years,” he said.

Surprise hasn’t had a city manager this century who has lasted for the seven-year national average. Hillman became the longest-tenured city manager since Jim Rumpeltes retired in 2008 after six years on the job.

Moving on

The process to hire a city manager can take more than a year.

Glendale went through two interim city managers in a little over a year before Brenda Fischer started her job in July.

One finalist for the position dropped out even before Fischer accepted the post.

The search for a new Avondale manager is ongoing. David Fitzhugh became the acting city manager in February, and it is unclear when the search for a new city manager will conclude.

Surprise Mayor Sharon Wolcott said she thinks that Surprise, now that it is past some of its financial woes, will attract high-quality candidates.

“We are very, very confident that we will find leadership who will find the city of Surprise an attractive place,” she said.