Should the next city manager come from Topeka? Efforts made to ensure Topekans have fair shot at job

Topeka’s last two permanent city managers, Brent Trout and Jim Colson, both left because there was someplace else they’d rather be. As Topeka elected officials recently laid the foundation for choosing a new city manager, they consequently left the door open for potentially finding a replacement who is from Topeka and wants to stay here. “I think there’s people here who are homegrown who may have more of an investment in this position,” said Councilwoman Sylvia Ortiz. Councilman Mike Lesser said he wanted to ensure qualified people who live here have a fair shot at the job. He suggested the mayor and council keep open the option of hiring a qualified, “proven business leader” to run the city, and not restrict the candidate field to people who have been city managers elsewhere.
Source: CJonline