Councilman Brockhouse Calls for City Manager's Resignation

Now that San Antonio citizens have overwhelmingly approved a measure limiting the pay and benefits of future city managers, he says the time has come for City Manager Sheryl Sculley to take the next step, News Radio 1200 WOAI reports.

"I think she should resign," Brockhouse told a packed news conference at the Firefighters union hall.

Brockhouse also said the passage of that measure and a measure mandating mediation for future firefighters union contracts also represents a 'vote of no confidence' in Mayor Ron Nirenberg, becuase the Mayor 'made this all about him.'

"It was good to see him contrite, recognizing his defeat at the hands of the voters," he said.

Brockhouse, who has been  a strong critic of the mayor during his first term on City Council, is widely believed to be planning to challenge Nirenberg in next May's municipal elections, although neither man has formally announced his future plans

.Brockhouse even went so far as to suggest that San Antonio consider a 'strong mayor' form of government, like the City of Houston, where the mayor also manages the city, and there is no city manager.

"I believe so," he said.  "They (Houston) has a controller, and it is a well compensated position, and they handle the day to day operations, much like Bexar County does.  That's where I think the position should eventually end up."

Brockhouse has long been critical of what he considers to be the heavy handed management of Sculley over City business, and he rejected the idea that the council is a 'board of directors' of the city.

"I think winning two out of three propositions, but I think we had a clear and decisive victory on Tuesday night," he said.  "Now what this needs to be about is listening to the people, and its about how these things that will handled, and then making changes that are meaningful and impactful for the people of this city."

Even though Brockhouse made his comments at the Firefighters Union hall, and surrounded by firefighters, union President Chris Steele, which the Go Vote No campaign tried to turn into the face of the amendments, was not at the news conference and wasn't even seen in the building.

He said the people 'resisted a three million dollar negative campaign to send a message that the people think the mayor and City Hall are out of touch with the way the government operated.'  

"We hope they listen.  Period."

"This came about through years of disrespect," he said.  "The City not listening to the people."

He also called on the City to immediatley drop its failed lawsuit against the firefighters union.  The lawsuit, seeing to have the 'Evergreen Clause' which the city agreed to in the 2011 contract, declared unconstitutional has failed at every court level.  The union has cited the lawsuit as the biggest impediment to beginning talks on a new contract.


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