Sacramento seeks public input on new city manager. Here’s how to get involved
Sacramentans hoping to weigh in on the city manager search will have six opportunities in the next two weeks.
CPS HR Consulting, the firm hired for the recruitment, will host four in-person and two virtual town halls from April 19 to 26. These events are among the few avenues for public participation in the months-long effort to fill the top position in Sacramento’s city’s government.
Pamela Derby, the executive recruitment manager for CPS HR Consulting, said last month that the new city manager will likely start in October.
The first town hall will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday at the North Natomas Community Center. The next in-person event will be hosted at the Hagginwood Community Center on April 23. Two separate town halls are scheduled for April 26 at the Oak Park Community Center and Sam & Bonnie Pannell Meadowview Community Center.
Two virtual town halls will be held on April 21 and 24. A four-question community survey is also available online in English, Spanish, Vietnamese and Cantonese.
The city posted the locations and times of the town halls on Tuesday.
Following these events, CPS HR Consulting will draft a recruitment brochure. The job opening will tentatively be posted during the first week of May. Interim City Manager Leyne Milstein told Inside Sacramento last month that she would not apply for the permanent position.
Councilmember Mai Vang had previously raised concerns about the lack of community involvement in the semi-final stages of the hiring process. The city decided not to go that route due to a lack of City Council consensus, said Derby last month. Derby also said such an approach is not the norm in California.
The next city manager will follow Howard Chan, who spent eight years in the role and resigned on Dec. 31, after the City Council rejected his requested contract extension. His resignation came after more than a year of criticism about his high salary and decision-making.
In 2023, Chan made roughly $593,240 in total wages, the second highest for a city manager in the state, according to the state’s controller office. Derby has suggested modifying certain incentives in a potential contract, including supplemental leave and severance, to ensure the new hire does not make as much.
A full schedule of the city manager recruitment can be found on the city’s website.
This story was originally published April 16, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
