Tomball City Manager George Shackelford Calling It A Career

TOMBALL, TX — There's a last time for everything.

That's a fact that Tomball City Manager George Shackleford has come face-to-face with in recent weeks.

Shackelford, who officially retires on April 2, sat in on his last meeting with representatives with the legislative committee on Tuesday, and will attend his last city council meeting as city manager on March 19 before wrapping up a 38-year career in ublic service.

"It's been a whirlwind, and seems like it's going faster," Shackelford said.

His desk is nearly empty, aside from a stack of documents and a fresh cup of coffee in a styrofoam cup he nursed periodically.

Said for a bookshelf, most of the pictures have been taken down and packed away, but those will be gone too, soon enough.

Since 2010, Shackelford has been the city manager in the city of just over 10,000 residents, but that all changed in October when Shackelford told the city council in a closed door meeting that it was time for him to retire.

"I always told the council that as long as I was having fun...I was going to stay," he recalled.

To Shackelford, the job is still fun, but he and his wife have three grown daughters and grandchildren they don't see as often.

They were missing too much of that important quality time with grandchildren, so it was time.

"I told the council that this was bittersweet," he said. "We've made a lot of good friends here in Tomball."

Since then, the city has weeded out nearly 40 candidates that was whittled down to about 15 in February, to just four on March 9.

The city council plans to met in a closed door session that day where they made their final decision, selecting Assistant City Manager Rob Hauck to fill Shackleford's shoes.

Shackleford remembers going through the same process eight years earlier, and remembers how rigorous the assessment process was for him, and he offers a rare smile.

"It's a full day," he says. "I have only been through one assessment. It was here, and it was tough. It's just a little bit all day long, but it wears you out."

The hard part of it all is behind Shackleford, who will be moving to Texarkana where he and his wife have a home, and where much of his family including his spry 91-year old mother still live.

It was just time to go home.

"I am so happy for him," said Hauck, who will take the reins officially on April 2.

Although he's hanging it up, Shackelford said he plans to sign with a couple of companies who provide experienced interim city managers to cities that are looking to fill those roles permanently.

But for the most part, his days next month will be dominated with lazy afternoons at the fishing pole with his grandson and things not related to city management.

The city will officially say goodbye to Shackelford at a retirement reception that will be held at Tomball City Hall on March 29 from 3-5 p.m.

Image: Bryan Kirk/Patch

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