As you all know, Joyce Wilson and Oscar Leeser held a press conference yesterday officially announcing the resignation of Joyce Wilson. The city issued two statements. I thought some of you would be interested in the statements.
Leeser issued a press release announcing that Joyce Wilson was resigning and that a search for a new city manager would begin. According to the mayor’s release dated October 13, 2013 “Joyce Wilson provided Mayor Leeser with a letter of resigning from her position as City Manager effective September 30, 2014 which is the date her contract with the City expires.” The release goes on to state that “Ms. Wilson has provided the notice in advance so the Mayor and Council will have sufficient time to conduct the appropriate recruitment and to allow for a smooth transition once the new City Manager is selected”.
The process is to begin immediately through the Human Resources Department, according to media release. It adds; “The first step will be to have the Purchasing Department put out a Request for Proposals (RFP) to the various executive search firms that can assist in the recruitment and hiring process.”
The press release quotes the mayor as stating; “Mayor Leeser is committed to having a professional open process that will allow the City to hire the best candidate possible to allow the City to continue to move forward.”
It closes with, “City Manager, Joyce Wilson has done an exceptional job as our City’s first City Manager. She has streamlined various organizational processes, re-organized City departments, worked on several major City initiatives and worked for three Mayors and multiple City Council members throughout her tenure with the City.”
The second release issued by the city yesterday was on behalf of Joyce Wilson. It states; “City Manager Joyce Wilson announced that she has officially notified the Mayor that she would not serve beyond September 2014 and would step down by the end of her contract.”
Wilson’s release quotes her; “It has been my honor and pleasure to serve the City of El Paso for the last nine years. It has been without a doubt the most challenging yet rewarding professional opportunity of my public career. I am particularly grateful for your public support and desire for me to stay on thru your transition into office when I was considering leaving El Paso this past summer. However, as I enter the last year of my contract term I feel it appropriate to tender my resignation effective as of September 30, 2014, which date represents the end of my contract with the City. I am providing the City with this advance notice in order to allow the City sufficient time to conduct the appropriate recruitment for a new City Manager. I look forward to working with Mayor Leeser and City Council in that process and visiting about this issue.”
Joyce Wilson’s media release adds that her resignation allows the city to “move forward” while giving her the “freedom to begin to look forward about her future professional pursuits beyond El Paso city government”.
Wilson closed by thanking previous city council representatives and mayors during her tenure.
