On Tuesday, the Bethel City Council chose an executive search firm to look for a new city manager. The name of the search firm remains confidential until the regular council meeting next week, when the contract could be approved.
Once council and the firm sign a contract, the firm will advertise the job, collect applications, and narrow down the field to a handful of applicants. That should take two to three months. Then it will be up to the council to review those candidates.
Last time Bethel looked for a city manager was in 2016, after former Bethel City Manager Ann Capela resigned. It took six months to fill the position, but last time the city clerk’s office handled the process instead of an outside firm.
Thirty-five people applied to fill Capela’s seat. Only a handful were from Bethel, and council read through each one of the 35 applications. In the end, they hired the former port director and then acting Bethel City Manager, Pete Williams.
