From one manager to the next, Chico has a new interim city manager just two weeks after the previous interim city manager came on board.
The Chico City Council unanimously voted for the former Butte County chief administrative officer to take on the temporary role during a closed session meeting Wednesday night, according to an announcement by the city. The announcement says Paul Hahn brings 29-years of county experience to the table that he accumulated prior to retiring in 2017.
Hahn replaces the former interim city manager, Chico Police Chief Matt Madden after he took on the role on Apr. 1. That was preceded by Chico's original city manager, Mark Orme, resigning from his position in late march for reasons both he and the city will not disclose.
Mayor Andrew Coolidge says two candidates were interviewed: one with past “history” with the city and Hahn. While this decision is intended to be the last managerial change before a new official city manager is hired, the public is still left questioning all of the shifts.
“What do you have to say then for people who just went through mysteriously losing their initial city manager, to get a new interim city manager, to get another new interim manager?" asks KRCR.
“I think Matt was great for just holding down the fort for a temporary period of time because he can't continue in that role. I think Paul Hahn is the perfect way to go and actually brings a wealth of experience both in relation to the county and in the city in terms of what we're facing at this current time,” replies Coolidge inside Chico’s municipal building Thursday afternoon.
But when asked why the sudden switch, city officials kept their lips shut. KRCR caught up with the now-former interim city manager who says the decision to step down is a mutual benefit to the city and himself. When asked, he hints that it additionally benefits his retirement funds too, which could have decreased significantly if he stayed in the role any longer.
“Was a potential change in retirement benefits anything to you that made you decide to step down?" asks KRCR.
"Well, I'm not going to get into my personal stuff. That's personnel matters and I don't discuss my personal situation,” responds Madden during a phone interview Thursday afternoon. “But one thing I can tell you is that I am towards the end of my career. I've got almost 30 years in the profession so these are all factors that not only does the city have to weigh moving forward but each person working for the city needs to do and what's also good for them on a personal level as well."
Regardless of the reason, Madden and Coolidge alike applaud the new temporary city manager who officially steps into his new role this Monday, Apr. 18.
“The city recognizes what you don’t want to do is get too much in a hurry when you’re looking for somebody at the top of the organization that needs to be here for a while and lead us through a lot of things that we’re dealing with,” says Madden. “(Hahn) comes to us with a vast knowledge, a lot of experience in local government, he’s fully aware of the issue here in the city. He will also provide much stability and really steer the ship so the city can focus on finding our next city manager.”
Coolidge says at the closed session meeting Wednesday night, the council additionally approved the “information” to “immediately” start the outreach process for potential candidates. He expects a new city manager to step into their role by mid-July.
“The recruiter goes out, puts out the information to the country, says, ‘look, the city of Chico’s looking for a city manager.’ Some cities a little smaller than our have had as many as 20 candidates when they’ve done this recently, so I’m pretty encouraged by that,” says Coolidge.”
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