The La Canada Flintridge City Council, which wisely has opted to wait
until the budgeting process is over before hiring a new city manager,
might be inclined to announce it will launch a nationwide, or at
least regional, search for candidates for the city's top position.
That's generally the tack taken by elected bodies when a big job they
supervise comes open. Members want to assure their constituents that
the best possible pool of candidates will be created, with the best
of the best, in theory, landing the job.
That's fine as far as it goes -- certainly no one wants to
discourage officials from seeking good candidates -- but the best
person for the city manager's position in La Canada Flintridge
already is intimately acquainted with the ins and outs of the job,
knows the council well, is respected in the community ... heck, he
already works for the city.
Mark Alexander, the assistant city manager, has worked for La
Canada Flintridge since 1988, when he was hired as an administrative
assistant. He became assistant to the city manager in 1991, a job
that became simply assistant city manager in 1994. In addition to
those duties, he is the deputy city attorney, and was interim city
manager for several months in 1998-99, before the City Council hired
Jerry Fulwood.
In short, he probably is as qualified a candidate as the City
Council will find to replace Fulwood, and better than most based on
his tenure with the city, his ability to perform several duties
simultaneously, and his good working relationship with the council.
Other candidates might present themselves, and it never hurts for
the council to see who's out there and what other people might offer.
But it's hard to believe they'd be preferable to Alexander, who
deserves the job.
