When Joe Livingston steps into his new job as Pauls Valley city manager, it appears he will have a little help with the transition.
The recent search for a new city manager ended last week when all five members of the Pauls Valley City Council announced he was their choice for the job.
Livingston appears to be getting some help in easing into the new role, as James Frizell, a longtime city manager who has been serving in an interim capacity for the past few months, will continue to work as a consultant for a while.
The big day is December 2, as that will be Livingston’s first day as city manager, while Frizell will also step down and move into his new role as an advisor to Livingston.
“My job is to help him get acclimated to Pauls Valley,” Frizell said.
Livingston is from Dalhart, Texas, located in the far northwest corner of the Texas Panhandle. He works as economic development director for a community of about 8,300 residents.
Frizell’s help should be a big help to the new city manager as the Pauls Valley city budget is currently facing a deficit, with expenses increasing and revenues decreasing.
“Right now our expenses are higher than our revenues,” Frizell said.
“The financial figures are currently negative and our revenues have fallen. We are now down about 5 percent. That’s a big problem.
“If he comes in, we have to address these issues and look at possible cuts. I’ll sit down with Joe when he gets here and we’ll have to make some tough decisions. We will have to look at where we need to make cuts, because the budget must be in balance at the end of the financial year.
“I will make a mid-year budget adjustment to correct this. We must be able to sustain ourselves in the future,” he said.
In his work as a consultant, Frizell said he plans to initially work with Livingston full-time to address the budget situation and other issues before easing his workload as necessary.
“We are still trying to put things right,” he said.
“My next role will not be city manager, but I think we have some things in order. We have an engineer who fills the water system and that process takes a long time.
“The new city manager is not going to magically solve the problems. We have to work together. There are some people there, so we can do this. In the future we will do what we have to do.”
With last week’s meeting being Frizell’s last as interim city manager, council members came forward to thank him for coming forward and helping when the city was in need.
“I appreciate it more than you know,” said Mayor Jocelyn Rushing. “We owe James for coming back and staying to ensure a smooth transition.”
“We appreciate what you’ve done for us,” Jonathan Grimmett said.
“Thank you very much, James,” said Vice Mayor Bonnie Meisel.
Frizell quickly responded to the council’s comments.
“This is still my hometown. I did it for you,” he said.
As for Livingston, Rushing said he was the best choice for the job.
“He has knowledge of economic development, and he has the kind of urban management readiness that we need,” Rushing said.
City Attorney Jay Carlton also announced last week that the city is now filing a lawsuit against the company that brought “smart” water meters to the community.
“We have initiated legal action against the water meter company,” he told councilors.
