San Antonio is expected to get a new City Manager this week, News Radio 1200 WOAI reports.
City officials spent the latter half of last week hammering out a new contract for veteran city staffer Erik Walsh, and he is expected to be officially named to that post on Thursday.
Walsh will succeed his long time boss Sheryl Sculley, who announced her retirement in November, and Walsh says one lesson he learned from Sculley will guide him in his new job.
"Results matter, but there needs to be relationships with all aspects of our community," he told News Radio 1200 WOAI's Michael Board.
Walsh is 49, a graduate of Central Catholic High School and Trinity University. He has worked for the City of San Antonio essentially his entire career, from a budget analyst to assistant to deputy to the City Manager. His most recent portfolio has been overseeing the Police and Fire Departments, arguably the two most critical services city government provides.
"At the end of the day, the Mayor, the City Council, and the citizens expect results, and that has to be the key," he said.
Even though Walsh will receive a lot more responsibility, he can't expect a lot more money to come along with it. Walsh currently makes about $256,000, and under the terms of the Charter Amendment passed last November, he can receive no more than about $312,000. That's a far cry from the $475,000, plus up to a $100,000 bonus, which she declined last year, that Sculley was paid.
In fact, Walsh will be the lowest paid big city city manager in Texas. The Dallas City Manager currently makes about $400,000 a year, while Austin's City Manager pulls down about $325,000. Houston has a strong mayor form of government and doesn't have a City Manager.