Council Set To Mull Bacock's Exit Agreement

Today's Fernley City Council meeting--set to begin at 4 p.m--will be punctuated by the council's consideration of long-time City Manager Gary Bacock's exit as the city's top executive and two versions of a proposed settlement agreement.
In what was originally slated to be the last council session before two new council members are sworn in during the first meeting in January, the council has now slated a special session for next Monday, apparently to clear some last minute business before the close of the year. More details on that to follow in an upcoming post...
The big item on today's agenda will see the council mulling over two proposed settlement agreements for Bacock, who said in an agenda report to the council that, "Due to the election, it is clear that a transition is coming."
Apparently seeing the handwriting on the wall, the embattled City Manager has proposed two versions of a settlement agreement with the city, one that would offer up six months of severance--two months longer than his current agreement with the city calls for in the event of termination--and another that offers the city's first and only manager the standard four months.
There are some nuances in wording between the two documents, but either version has a certain level of goodwill and transitional assistance attached to the agreement. On the surface, it appears that the major difference lies in the term--four months versus six.
In his agenda report to the council dated December 11, Bacock recommends three current department heads as possible candidates for the interim city manager: Bonnie Duke, Finance Director/Treasurer; Lowell Patton, Public Works Director; and Fred Turnier, Community Development Director. "Each of these department heads has the experience to temporarily fill this acting assignment," Bacock tells the council.
Based on the terms of either agreement, Bacock will be placed on paid administrative leave Saturday, December 20. Bacock, who pulls down a salary in the low six figures, was hired as Fernley's first town manager in September 1998. He became city manager when the town incorporated July 1, 2001.
Tucked away on the council's standard consent agenda are a couple of items worthy of note...
There are three acquisitions of land for water conveyance projects, presumably tied to the ongoing construction of the city's water treatment plant. The combined cost of those acquisitions total $183,000.
The council will also award the construction contract for the Nevada Pacific Parkway waterline relocation project that has to be done in order for the new interchange to proceed at I-80. While the city has a shared cost agreement with Nevada Department of Transportation, the city's exposure on the project is pegged at $436,613.38.
Other regular agenda items include swearing in the 2009 Youth City Council, and a review of all appointments to various committees and commissions in an effort to determine whether a council member, city staffer or a member of the public would be better suited to certain committees.