Special City Council Business Meeting - December 16, 2025: Selection of Executive Search Firm

Yeah, I think that's a good thing.

Uh City Clerk Christine Brown, Ben De Bray.

And City Clerk, would you please call the role?

Yes, thank you, Mayor.

Christine Brown, City Clerk.

Please state for the record if you're present after I call your name.

Mayor Matthews, present, Deputy Mayor Quitsland.

Present.

Councilmember Fatmara Johnson.

Present.

Councilmember Hytapoulis.

Present.

Councilmember Morwaki.

Present.

Councilmember Schneider.

Present.

Thank you.

And let's do the Pledge of Allegiance.

This is the flag of the United States of America.

And our public for which it stands.

One nation, under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all.

And I'm gonna say this Quamish land acknowledgement.

Every part of this soil is sacred in the estimation of my people.

Every hillside, every valley, every plain and grove has been hallowed by some sad or happy event in days long banished.

Chief Seattle, 1854.

We would like to begin by acknowledging that the land on which we gather is within the ancestral territory of the Suquabs, people of clear saltwater, Sequamish people, expert fishermen, canoe builders, basket weavers, the Sequamish live in harmony with the lands and waterways along Washington's central Salish Sea as they have for thousands of years.

Here the Suquabs live and protect the lands and waters of their ancestors for future generations as promised by the Point Elliott Treaty of 1855.

And oh and we'll approve our agenda.

Thank you.

So motion made by Councilmember Morowaki, seconded by Councilmember Fan Troy Johnson.

All those in favor?

Aye.

Aye.

And are there any conflicts of interest this evening?

I can't even look at you.

It's ridiculous.

Okay.

Okay.

Only in a matter of taste.

Exactly.

Seeing none.

Um, we'll move on to public comment.

Is there anyone online?

Okay.

Then we are on to regular business.

Um item four A, City Manager.

Well, yes, the item before you is the uh selection or the direction to me to enter into a contract on your behalf with an executive recruiting firm prof and company is the recommended firm.

Just to give you some background, and then I'll turn it over to the members of the subcommittee.

Uh you authorize me to prepare a solicitation uh for an executive recruiting service.

We prepared that solicitation.

We provided it through a number of channels, uh, both we provided it directly to firms that we knew operated.

Uh we presided it to uh International City Managers Association, Association Washington Cities, uh also and posted it on our website.

In response to the solicitation, we received a total of eight responses, and I would consider that a good response.

Um the responses, and I'll just tell you the firms, uh Bob Murray and uh Bob Murray, uh Raf Tellis, GMP consultants, Rafkitt Associates, Keras Consulting, Kauf and Associates, Profman, Ralph Anderson and Associates.

Uh these were turned over to the uh subcommittee, and uh the subcommittee consisted of Councilmember Schneider, uh Hytopolis and Morwacki.

Um they probably can fill you in on their deliberation and the review of the proposals.

Thanks, City Manager.

Uh Councilmember I couldn't tell Hyptopolis or Morwauckey went first.

Well, I'm hoping to um I'm gonna defer to my colleagues to maybe make this come comment specifically more specifically maybe than I even do about the final choice, but what's really important to me, process was very important to me in this situation.

This is my I think third big city manager search, and I feel like I had a good idea for some of the things that we could find that we'd like and wouldn't like.