Worcester City Hall. File photo
After more than eight years on the job, Worcester City Manager Edward Augustus will leave City Hall for the last time next month.
And a search for the city’s next chief executive will soon be underway – the City Council’s Municipal and Legislative Operations Committee is expected to discuss the selection process for Augustus’ permanent replacement at its meeting on Wednesday.
Augustus announced in March that he would step down on May 31. His tenure has been marked by support for several key real estate projects helping revitalize the city, including developments in the Canal District around Polar Park and the Reactory biomanufacturing complex under construction near the University of Massachusetts Medical School.
“Serving the people of Worcester as its sixth city manager has been the honor of my life. I am forever grateful for the support I have received from the City Council, the city family, and the residents of Worcester,” Augustus, a state senator from 2005 until 2009, said in a news release. “I take great pride in the accomplishments we have achieved together – united in a common purpose: to improve the quality of life of our residents.”
On April 5, the City Council voted to appoint Eric Batista as acting city manager starting June 1. Batista has served as assistant city manager and director of Worcester’s Office of Urban Innovation and was involved in developing a slate of police reform recommendations brought forward by Augustus’ office last year.
The original motion called for Batista’s contract to last for nine months, but some residents and councilors had concerns about setting a defined term and whether that would make Batista the de facto choice for the permanent job. Several councilors stressed that they support Batista but want to see more public involvement in the decision than has been typical of previous searches.
“I feel really, really uncomfortable already making the determination of who our next city manager will be without proper process,” District 5 Councilor Etel Haxhiaj said. “And so whether the ad hoc committee is a combination of [municipal and legislative operations], or other people in the community or the city council, I really urge us as a body to follow the process to have community input.”
After a failed motion by District 3 Councilor George Russell to set the acting manager’s term at two years, the council ultimately voted 11-0 to appoint Batista to serve until a permanent city manager is appointed. The council also voted 11-0 to approve motions proposed by Councilor-At-Large Khrystian King, which will require the city to select an executive search firm through a request for proposals to oversee the hiring.
The Municipal and Legislative Operations Committee is set this week to consider Batista’s contract and salary in an executive session, followed by a public discussion around the formal selection process for a permanent replacement. The committee has also been tasked with forming a community ad-hoc committee to gather input directly from residents. The meeting is scheduled for Wednesday at 6 p.m. in the Levi Lincoln Chamber at City Hall.
