Finalist For Evanston City Manager Takes Different Job

EVANSTON, IL — The search for the next Evanston city manager is headed back to the drawing board after one of the two finalists for the job accepted a position elsewhere.

Daniel Ramos, deputy city administrator and mayor's deputy chief of state in Baltimore, had not yet begun contract negotiations when he notified city officials that he had withdrawn from consideration, the City Council announced Tuesday in a statement.

"As the City Council does not see a path forward with the current search, it intends to restart the search process with a new executive recruitment firm as quickly as possible," it said.

The search has been led by the Sacramento, California-based firm CPS HR Consulting, which was awarded a $25,000 contract in September 2021 to recruit a permanent replacement for former City Manager Erika Storlie.

Interim City Manager Kelley Gandurski has led staff since Storlie's negotiated resignation took effect in October. Storlie last month took over as village administrator of East Dundee.

Michael Jasso, one of four assistant city managers in Sacramento, California, was the other finalist to succeed Storlie on a permanent basis.

Ramos decided instead to take a job as executive director of budget and management in Harris County, Texas, he said.

Related: Evanston City Manager Finalists Named, Community Meetings Planned

Ald. Cicely Fleming, 9th Ward, who announced plans to resign at the end of the month after seeing out the city manager hiring process, told Patch that she was not going to be sticking around for a new search.

Related: Group Endorses Baltimore Deputy For Evanston City Manager Job

The City Council statement said the mayor and alderpeople appreciated everyone who applied for the position and everyone who had participated in the process so far.

"The City Council is committed to a community-informed search," it continued, "and will provide updates to the community as soon as more information becomes available."