Don’t worry, Eureka; you will soon have a new city manager. The Eureka City Council is having a closed special meeting on Tuesday to discuss selecting someone for this important position.

Current City Manager Greg Sparks announced his retirement in July and the recruitment period closed at the end of August.

Eureka City Clerk Pam Powell told the Outpost that the purpose of the meeting is to meet with the recruiter, narrow down the applicants to the top candidates and finalize the interview process.

Though Powell isn’t certain about all the details of that process, she was able to tell the Outpost that the council is trying some new methods for selecting the next city manager. In addition to being individually interviewed by the council, candidates will also be interviewed by a panel of community members selected by the council.

Powell said that the mayor and each council member is allowed to select one member of the public to represent them. These panel members will report their interview impressions to the council and it will be factored into the decision-making process.

Most unusually, though: The city also plans to hold a public meeting, where community members are invited to ask the candidates questions and the council will be able to observe how each candidate performs in this setting. Powell doesn’t know all the details yet, but said that this meeting is planned for Oct. 11 at the Wharfinger Building.

Powell said the city will be releasing more information, including the names of the final candidates, sometime before Oct. 11.

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