South Pasadena Appoints Interim City Manager

Former assistant city manager Sergio Gonzales was appointed interim city manager of South Pasadena on November 5 replacing John Davidson who was appointed city manager of Irwindale.

Gonzales served as Davidson’s assistant since December 2008. He will receive an annual salary of $143,000, a 10 percent increase from his former compensation along with benefits that he currently gets.

The City Council can only appoint a permanent city manager after the elections.

“I believe that we have placed a good man in that position who will be ready to step up for us,” Mayor Mike Ten said in a statement.

Council member Richard Schneider also prised the appointment of Gonzales whom he believed will contribute to the stability of the city and stay in the city for a while.

The council has two options to fill the permanent position. One is to appoint someone using its own judgement or conduct a formal recruitment process.

“Recruitment at this executive level is conducted by a professional recruitment firm and can cost from $20,000 to $30,000,” said Gonzalez.

Once the firm recruits and narrows down candidates, the Council would interview the selected individuals. The Council would then give the City Attorney the authority to negotiate the terms and conditions for a formal contract. This process would take anywhere between 3 and 4 months.

Some residents have raised their concerns on transparency regarding filing in the position of city manager. Others claimed that the City can save money by eliminating the position of assistant city manager.

Gonzalez came to South Pasadena in 2003 as a part of the community services department.