Bridge City will be looking for a new city manager in the next two to three months. Current City Manager Jerry Jones officially handed in his letter of resignation to the City Council in Bridge City on Monday announcing his retirement in January 2022.
Jones has served as the City Manager in Bridge City since 2005 after also serving as the Public Works Director beginning in 1999. He is currently the longest serving city manager or city administrator in Orange County.
Jones indicated his retirement early next year will conclude over fifty years of public service. “I’ve got grandkids coming up and I need to spend time with them, and I need to do some things that I’ve neglected for a long time. I feel fortunate to be able to do that,” Jones replied.
Mayor David Rutledge read aloud Jones’ letter announcing his retirement effective January 14, 2022. Rutledge then thanked Jones for his years of service to Bridge City. “We hate to see him go, but we’re glad that he gets to go retire and have a good life after retirement to do the things he really wanted to do but he’s put on the back burner because of the things he’s helped us out with the city and all the things we’ve been through together,” Rutledge commented.
Also, retiring is Councilwoman Lucy Fields who has served multiple terms on the City Council. Fields came to Bridge City with her husband Donald when he became the public works director and then the city manager in 1999.
All of the members of the council thanked Fields for her years of service on the council and with the Bridge City Chamber of Commerce. Fields admitted stepping down from the council is sad, but it is for the better in the long run. Fields expressed, “I love you all and thank you all, and I will miss you, but I’ll be out there.”
The final order of business on Monday was appointing a replacement for Fields as the Place 6 member on the City Council. A closed door session was held by the council before it reconvened in open session and named Richard Savoy as the new council member. Savoy (right) will serve until the next municipal election in May 2022 when Fields’ term is due to expire, at which time he can run for another term.
Savoy and the City Council will hold its regular meeting Tuesday evening. The agenda is brief with the normal reports and citizen comments. The only order of business is a proclamation recognizing the 100th birthday for Cedric Stout on November 7.
-Dan Perrine, KOGT-
Social Media