Longtime Richardson City Manager Bill Keffler announced his retirement yesterday. He's served as City Manager for 17 years. Congratulations to Mr. Keffler on his retirement and thanks to him for his 35 years of service to the city of Richardson. Keffler's retirement compounds the changes Richardson is undergoing at city hall. Last year, longtime mayor Gary Slagel stepped down. For years, city government in Richardson was almost synonymous with the Slagel/Keffler partnership.
Due to Richardson's council-manager form of government, the role of city manager is a particularly strong one. The city council sets policy for the city and has the responsibility to hire the city manager, but day-to-day execution of city business is in the hands of the city manager. It's that responsibility to hire another great city manager that now falls to this city council. Because of Keffler's long tenure, no one on this city council has any experience doing that. I urge them to take their time, to act independently and resist outside influence, to conduct a wide and thorough search, and to choose someone who is a strong leader, an able manager, a good communicator and will always have the best interests of Richardson at heart.
14 comments:
He's milked about as much as he can get from this community, while sinking Richardson into more debt than the people can repay in 30 years. After plunging Richardson into a cycle of deficit spending and corporate handouts, there's no place for Bill Keffler to go but away, far away. Take the money and run, Bill. It's downhill for Richardson from here, thanks to you.
But, given past ineptness, city leaders will probably hire him back as a consultant to help the next guy figure out the tangled web he and his henchmen wove.
Past records have been destroyed and investigative trails covered. Safe to make a run for the border now.
Relieved after 35 years of the old way of doing business, maybe the City of Richardson can find a way to break free from the choke hold on innovation and be a leader instead of a follower.
May Bobby and Pete will follow. One can only hope.
Gosh Nathan, if you really have such a strong distaste for Richardson and hate the way it is managed so much, maybe you should consider moving. Personally, I think Richardson has been and remains a well run, well managed city. The way the city financials have been managed has been recognized numerous times - I believe 32 years running.
Richardson isn't perfect, but in my humble opinion the city father's (and mother's) have done a good job of attracting good businesses large and small, good universities, and a quality work force of well educated individuals. Honestly, I don't see a lot to complain about.
Nathan did move over a year ago to San Antonio...a fact he likes to keep secret so that people don't wonder why he keeps slandering people in Richardson, a city that he chose to walk away from.
Bill
Richardson has some serious challenges. Someone can bash Keffler and Richardson all they want. However, while I believe Richardson could be further in attacking those challenges head on, we could very well have been in a horrible and insurmountable position if not for Keffler and others who share in that work. Many American suburbs (let alone North Texas cities) learned too late the lessons that Richardson learned long ago and part of that is owed to Keffler. I think folks that bash Keffler take the current state of the city for granted. The fact that many still want to live here is owed at least partly to him whether they want to admit it or not.
Don't forget, kids, it was Slagel, Keffler, et.al. who caused the near collapse they managed to patch up until now.
The show isn't over yet. There is still untold, unfunded mandates that have been kept off the books.
The City is not in near as good shape as the propaganda and pomp has purported.
As for those so-called "audits" and accolades, any intelligent person can see through the smoke and mirrors. Read the disclaimer by the auditor before accepting what follows as God's honest truth.
Do your homework. Richardson is facing the hardest of times ahead, thanks to Keffler and his regime.
glbeach,
I didn't say Richardson was distasteful. In fact, my comments have been consistently about how badly the leaders behave and the harm that has caused.
The problem the people of Richardson have is that they are in denial and, naturally, want to think they place they live is some kind of utopia. It's not, and largely because of a long string of management blunders nobody wants to admit or address.
As for the town itself, it is a great location with lots of potential. It's a pity it is in such bad shape as a community. Nobody is to blame except those who have been running the show for the past generation.
It's time to throw some chlorine in the gene pool at City Hall.
"It's a pity it is in such bad shape as a community."
Nathan, you are simply hallucinating.
Fortunately, the decent people in Richardson, if they ever have the misfortune to read your screeds, will look around at one of the more successful cities in the area and say to themselves, "Well, if he's wrong about how bad off the city is, then maybe he's wrong about everything else." And based on your track record - amply documented at www.RumorCheck.org - this would be true.
It's hard to find anything that you've been right about...
Bill
Sorry about that, Mark. Willy's above pontification was particularly dim. He has a way of getting under one's skin that's really too humorous to ignore sometimes. It begs a direct response at times, not to his insults, but to the shear absurdity of the thoughts.
Let the law speak for itself. I quoted it as it is today. If Willy wants to live in the past, so be it.
What insults? What absurdity of thought?
Let's stick with the facts, Nathan.
Do you have any proof, any evidence, any eye-witness testimony to allegations of unethical and corrupt conduct you spoke of above?
Any?
No, not a repeat of your vague accusations and slander, but honest to God evidence that would stand up in court.
No, of course, you don't have any, or you would have presented it before.
Let it go, Nathan. You chose to leave Richardson more than a year ago, and you still can't let go of the fact that your lack of any hard evidence is simply proof that you are wrong...it's very sad...
Bill
Willy,
Have you lost your mind...again? This is planet Earth. Keep your feet on the ground and your head out of the sand. It will help you see reality. Trust me.
Much of Richardson was built through public corruption, not the kind that can easily documented after the records have been shredded. Your friends are adept at that sort of thing. And, you exploit that fact every time you boast about the public inability to discover what has been destroyed.
Ever wonder why there is so little history in the public record about the city of Richardson?
"Much of Richardson was built through public corruption, not the kind that can easily documented after the records have been shredded. Your friends are adept at that sort of thing. And, you exploit that fact every time you boast about the public inability to discover what has been destroyed."
Are you serious, Nathan? You maintain that your inability to find documentation of the public corruption in the City is proof that there must have been public corruption?
Can you not see how absurd that is?
By the same logic, since I haven't found eny evidence that you are a mass murderer, that this is proof that you are a mass murderer!
You don't present arguments with facts, you instead make accusations backed by no proof whatever - by your own admission.
Bill
Silly Willy,
Why do you constantly challenge and contradict anything said here? Do you have not better sense than to be a contrarian?
There have been several blocked/unanswered public information requests. And, the shredder trucks were lined up at city hall during the weekend when oblivious people were out enjoying their family, looking the other way.
You act as if you know it all. I can't help but smile at your ignorance when you whine about showing proof. There are many eye-witnesses. Of course, that doesn't keep people interested in obfuscating the truth from lying about it. Does it now?
As an example, I just happen to remember an episode about the deed restrictions being violated around the property where the new Braum's is located on Campbell Road.
Oh, oh! And what about all those records pertaining to the development of the Eisemann Center and Galatyn Park that are safely tucked away from the prying eyes of the public? There's a juicy tid bit for you to bloviate about.
How about the TABC violations, Pete Smith and David Morgan's involvement with the liquor business they ran from the Sherrill Park municipal golf course?
How about that shell game they were playing with EastSide developers, highway funds and public property in Ordinance #3712? Did you overlook the corruption in that deal?
How about the missing records of Slagel paying rent while his CapitalSoft was shacked up in the city's "Technology Development Center" (STARTech)?
What about the mysteriously missing accounting of the alleged $2M donation Chuck Eisemann paid to get his name etched in the face of the city's biggest self-managed construction blunder in Richardson history?
And, what about those campaign statements to revamp the City Charter? Did you conveniently overlook that sham?
How about that cottage retail enterprise operating out of the Senior Center where there is no State Sales & Use Tax permit?
How do you feel about public funds being used to pay for membership, travel and other expenses for public employees to participate in lobbying efforts for their own self-interest? It's called the Texas Municipal League, in case you wondered.
Also, what about public funds being used to maintain walls and fences on private property? "Leftwich" sound familiar?
Why is the Parks Department the go-to place whenever money or some quiet entertainment is scheduled? Where's the public notice of all the parties and accountability?
I could go on, but I'll let you chew on this list for a while. Don't be foolish enough to yak about any of these until you've done your homework. Extra points for accuracy.
Keep it up, Willy. I'm enjoying the free entertainment. Glad to accommodate your obsession.
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