The revolving door in the San Juan Bautista City Manager’s
office has taken another spin, making Janice McClintock the city’s
third leader in less than a year. Still, moving quickly to replace
Jennifer Coile, who resigned after six months on the job, was the
right move because there is an important project looming that needs
attention.
The revolving door in the San Juan Bautista City Manager’s office has taken another spin, making Janice McClintock the city’s third leader in less than a year. Still, moving quickly to replace Jennifer Coile, who resigned after six months on the job, was the right move because there is an important project looming that needs attention.
And it is time for the San Juan City Council and McClintock – who left a position as special projects manager with the city of Fontana in southern California to come to San Juan – to focus on creating stability and continuity in the mission city’s local government.
Stability is especially important as the city works on replacing it’s decrepit water collection system – some of the pipes are rumored to be made of redwood – and managing the $3.8 million federal grant that will fund the project. This is the most important project on San Juan’s plate and it is in trouble because of a power struggle between the city and the San Benito County Water District.
McClintock’s top priority should be putting the project back on sound footing by reopening a dialogue with the water district about managing the grant and the project together. Hopefully, McClintock’s hiring will end the turnover at the top of San Juan’s leadership ladder, but churn in government positions, including the city council, is a fact of life and it will be important for her to ensure the project can go forward despite changes. A partnership with the water district would help establish stability and institutional knowledge.
It was encouraging to hear that one of McClintock’s priorities is creating transparency in city government. Under Coile’s management, the city’s relationship with the press deteriorated dramatically, and the city council damaged it’s credibility with residents when two council members went on a secret trip to Seattle to discuss the grant with the federal Economic Development Agency. The council retroactively approved the trip after District Attorney John Sarsfield looked into whether a Brown Act violation had occurred.
Repairing that relation with the public through a commitment to open government and forthright communication – with the public and the press – will go a long way to putting McClintock in a position to succeed as the city manager.
Welcome to San Juan Bautista Ms. McClintock, you have your work cut out for you, but with dedication to the job, transparency and stability at the top, San Juan can become the county’s jewel.
