City Manager Harry Black keeps post in Stockton’s top job

City Manager Harry Black will keep his job in Stockton.

Stockton City Council met in a lengthy closed session late Tuesday evening to discuss discipline, dismissal or firing of the city manager.

It was the second week in a row the item appeared on the agenda.

Christina Fugazi, former vice mayor of Stockton, spoke on the item during public comment. Fugazi said she was speaking on behalf of "the 14,000 public employees in the city of Stockton who may have faced ... intimidation, bullying, a work environment that may be hostile."

She didn't provide examples or state if she witnessed such behavior while working with Black.

"This is a very difficult time for the city of Stockton, but we can't put one individual over the 1,400 individuals that we have for this city," the former vice mayor said. "Tonight you have the opportunity to take action and I would implore you to do what needs to be done. Enough is enough."

The closed session portion of the meeting went over time by 30 minutes, delaying the beginning of open session from 5:30 p.m. to 6 p.m.

Similar to last week’s meeting, City Attorney Lori Asuncion said there was no reportable action after the council returned to open session on Tuesday.

It’s unclear if any disciplinary action was taken against the city manager or what may have led to the item being put on the Oct. 17 and Oct. 24 agendas in the first place.

During his public comment, 209 Times founder Motecuzoma Sanchez said he filed a complaint in the spring on behalf of a California Water Service, Cal Water, employee who Black allegedly referred to as a "f---ing b---h."

"While the city agenda is not allowed to disclose publicly what Harry Black is up for dismissal for, I am here to tell the public that this is why," Sanchez said.

Because the item was discussed during closed session, there is no way of knowing whether this is true. The woman, identified as Shannon McGovern, did not speak at the meeting. It's unclear if the city's policy forbids cursing or name calling.

City leaders can't talk about what was discussed during closed session as doing so would be a violation of California's Ralph M. Brown Act, which dictates how elected bodies conduct their business.

The media can report on what was said, but evidence has yet to come to light.

A career marked by successes, controversies

Throughout his career, Black has left a trail of successes and controversies in the cities he’s served.

Before coming to Stockton, he had a two-year tenure as Baltimore’s finance director from 2012 to 2014.

Baltimore's former Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake credited Black with bringing the city’s budget from deficits to balanced. She also referred to him as the “lead architect” of the city’s 10-year financial plan when he announced his resignation in 2014.

Black left Baltimore to serve as the city manager of Cincinnati, where he was lauded for upgrading the city’s bond ratings, according to a news release from the mayor’s office.

However, he faced backlash after visiting a strip club with Cincinnati's chief of police and two assistant police chiefs during a work trip.

Black left the job in 2018 after problems with the city's 911 center came to light. He resigned before a meeting to oust him and he later threatened to sue the city. Months after his resignation, Cincinnati paid him $370,000 to avoid a lawsuit.

Black was hired as the city manager of Stockton in January 2020 at a base pay of $270,000. At the time, former Mayor Michael Tubbs said Black was the best candidate of the four finalists vying for Stockton’s city manager position.

In January 2022, Black told The Record that his goal was to help Stockton “become the most data informed, customer service, and results centric city government in the United States.”

Record reporter Hannah Workman covers news in Stockton and San Joaquin County. She can be reached at hworkman@recordnet.com or on Twitter @byhannahworkman. Support local news, subscribe to The Stockton Record at https://www.recordnet.com/subscribenow.

This article originally appeared on The Record: City Manager Harry Black keeps post in Stockton’s top job