A week after Austin City Council members expressed in a closed-door meeting unanimous support for a new city manager, they’re scheduled to vote on a severance package for the presumed outgoing one, Spencer Cronk.
Austin City Manager Spencer Cronk speaks at a press conference about winter storm recovery efforts on Feb. 6. Some Austin elected officials have placed the blame for botched communication surrounding the storm and its damage on Cronk.unanimous support for a new city managerCouncil members say Cronk will be leaving, but it’s unclear if he will resign or if the council will vote to fire him. In Austin, the city manager serves as the city's chief executive, overseeing day-to-day operations.
Cronk is the city's second-highest paid executive, earning $388,190 a year. The only staff member who outearns him is Jackie Sargent, general manager of Austin Energy, who earned $403,000 last year.pummeled the city, bringing down electric lines and leaving hundreds of thousands of people without power for days.
“If … it’s going to be 100 hours or more without electricity, people will make different choices. But we have to let them know so that they can prepare for themselves and their families, and we did not do that," Council Member Chito Vela, who represents parts of North Austin, told KUT last week."I’m very disappointed.”for botched communication at Cronk’s feet. Unlike many other major U.S. cities, Austin has what's called a council-manager form of government.
Cronk has been Austin's city manager since 2018. In an email sent Monday to city staff and shared with KUT, Cronk praised the work of his staff and noted it was his five-year anniversary in the job.
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