Tuesday, April 23, 2024
Another discussion about Granbury City Manager Chris Coffman’s contract again ended this week with no action taken.
As before, the item was placed on the agenda by Mayor Jim Jarratt, who was seated in a special election held June 29.
Jarratt placed an item on the executive session portion of the Oct. 4 council meeting to consider acting on the city’s manager’s contract. Courses of action included the possibility of termination.
The agenda item prompted the city’s department heads to collectively express support for the city manager. Two of them, Finance Director Eva Gregory and Police Chief Mitch Galvan, spoke at the meeting.
The most recent contract discussion took place during a special meeting held Monday night for the purpose of reading and voting on an ordinance to expand a development moratorium necessitated by a delay in the building of a second wastewater treatment plant.
The delay has been caused by opposition to the plant’s proposed location on Old Granbury Road.
Jarratt stated that his purpose for placing the city manager agreement on the agenda was to “protect the city” from “liability.”
He indicated concern over a clause in the contract that allows the agreement to perpetually renew if action is not taken by the council “90 days prior to the expiration of the first year of the initial term.”
Coffman is due for his annual review in February, which is roughly 90 days away.
Coffman, who joined the city in the spring of 2015, has a three-year contract that automatically renews every year. The automatic renewal pushes the contract out another year.
The structure of the contract seems to have confused some.
To clarify, Coffman explained at the meeting that if the council took no action that night, his contract would automatically renew and “mature” in 2023.
Jarratt called a brief recess so that he could consult with City Attorney Jeremy SoRelle. All council members joined him in the council conference room.
When the council reconvened the public meeting, it took no action.
Coffman's three-year contract and yearly renewal do not mean that the city manager cannot be fired by the council for “good cause,” nor does it mean that he cannot resign or depart through mutual agreement.
A copy of the agreement can be found on the city manager page of the city’s website, www.granbury.org.
