Merced city manager discussion on agenda Monday

Merced’s new city manager could come from Los Banos, pending a closed session meeting Monday.

Steve Carrigan, who has led Los Banos for almost three years, is the subject of the closed-door discussion, Mayor Stan Thurston and Councilman Kevin Blake confirmed to the Sun-Star on Friday. Both also stressed that nothing is final.

Thurston said the meeting will consist of final contract and background-check reviews, but declined to discuss Carrigan any further until after Monday’s meeting. Blake also declined further discussion.

The agenda posted for the regular Monday meeting of the City Council includes items on appointing a new city manager and hiring current City Manager John Bramble on an interim basis.

Carrigan, 52, was the assistant city manager of Sanger before coming to Merced County. Before that, he spent eight years as economic development director in Stockton. He has more than 20 years of experience in the public sector.

Carrigan confirmed his interest in the Merced job, saying the city has the potential for growth.

He pointed to the $1 billion expansion of UC Merced and plans for a high-speed-rail stop in town.

“Those two projects really can truly transform a community,” he said.

As a leader in Los Banos, Carrigan said, he has worked with Merced County supervisors and other public employees, as well as with Merced’s city employees.

“I know the plays and the players,” he said.

Carrigan also is a member of county transportation boards and is chairman of the Continuum of Care, a coalition of homeless advocates and service providers.

Carrigan has seen some ups and downs in his time as a public employee.

Stockton, in a tailspin while dealing with a $30 million budget crisis, laid off Carrigan in 2009 along with two other department leaders and 29 police officers. The city officially filed for bankruptcy in 2012, and was granted Chapter 9 protection in 2013.

“I did see the boom and the bust,” he said. “One thing about the boom is you need time.”

He said if given the Merced job, he’d look to develop a long-term plan for improving the community by meeting with school and business leaders, churches and other community organizations.

Steve Tietjen, superintendent of the Los Banos Unified School District, has worked with Carrigan during his time in Los Banos.

“He is really a visionary city manager,” he said. “Over the last three years, he’s developed a good relationship with the school district.”

Carrigan said Los Banos has faced many of the same issues Merced continues to see. Both cities are without a revenue-sharing agreement with Merced County, and each faces high crime, growing homeless numbers and a lack of jobs.

During his time in Stockton, four large shopping centers were built in the city. Merced expects to develop a similar project, the Gateway Center, planned for an area near Highway 99 and Campus Parkway.

Merced’s next city manager will step into an improving economy, experts have said, but the city’s general fund of $36.8 million this year is still short of the 2007 level, which was $39.3 million.

Los Banos Councilman Scott Silveira, who has worked with Carrigan throughout his tenure, spoke highly of him, saying Merced would be “lucky to have him.”

Carrigan originally is from Arizona, where he earned his bachelor’s degree at the University of Arizona. He also has worked for the state Trade and Commerce Agency and in Union City.

Monday’s closed session discussion is scheduled before the regular meeting starts at 7 p.m. at City Hall, 678 W. 18th St.

This story was originally published December 4, 2015 at 6:24 PM with the headline "Merced city manager discussion on agenda Monday."