By Everton Bailey Jr.https://www.dallasnews.com/
Outgoing Dallas City Manager T.C. Broadnax is a step closer to becoming city manager in Austin.
According to a city council message board post from Mayor Kirk Watson, a subcommittee has recommended Broadnax move forward to become the next city manager.
In the message, with a heading of “City Manager Search Update,” Mayor Watson writes that the subcommittee “recommends that we post a council action for April 4, 2024, to authorize negotiation of an employment agreement with T.C. Broadnax.” The notice further says, “This posting will also be for potential passage of an ordinance to employ T.C. Broadnax as Austin City Manager.”
Broadnax did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday night.
Although the full Austin City Council still needs to approve the recommendation, two council members responded to Watson’s post congratulating Broadnax. Council member Zo Qadri referred to Broadnax as “our next city manager”.
Council member Ryan Alteralso welcomed Broadnax ahead of next week’s vote.
“I want to congratulate TC Broadnax on his selection and really look forward to getting to work together to not just solve the pressing challenges facing Austin, but build on all the areas that already make this such a great place to live,” Alter wrote.
The development comes just one day after Broadnax, one of two finalists for Austin’s city manager job, was part of a question and answer session in front of a capacity crowd at the Permitting and Development Event Center in Austin.
The other finalist was Denton City Manager Sara Hensley, a former Austin assistant city manager who has also led the city’s parks and recreation department. Both were interviewed by the Austin City Council during a closed meeting on Tuesday.
Broadnax started as Dallas city manager in 2017. His resignation was announced Feb. 21 and goes into effect June 3.
It’s unclear what Broadnax’s salary would be if he becomes Austin’s next city manager. Based on the terms of his contact in Dallas, he could be owed a lump sum payment matching his $423,246 annual salary. The city has declined to confirm if he’ll receive that payout or any other compensation when he exits in June.
Dallas is the ninth largest city in the country with around 1.3 million residents, has around 13,100 employees and a $4.6 billion annual budget. Austin, with more than 970,000 residents is the 10th largest city in the country, has more than 16,000 municipal employees, and the Austin City Council last summer adopted a $5.5 billion budget. Denton has around 150,000 residents, a city budget of $1.95 million and has more than 1,000 employees.
Austin has been without a permanent city manager since February 2023 when their City Council fired Spencer Cronk amid criticism of the city’s response to an ice storm that month that left more than 100,000 homes and businesses without power. Cronk also faced backlash tied to his work negotiating a new police contract. Jesús Garza, a former Austin city manager, has been serving in the interim role.
This story, originally published in The Dallas Morning News, is reprinted as part of a collaborative partnership between The Dallas Morning News and Texas Metro News. The partnership seeks to boost coverage of Dallas’ communities of color, particularly in southern Dallas.
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