Interim City Manager Paul Parker at his desk at Wimberley City Hall during his previous stint in the office. WIMBERLEY VIEW FILE PHOTO
New interim city administrator hired
The city of Wimberley has officially parted ways with City Administrator Shawn Cox and appointed Paul Parker as Interim City Administrator.
Cox officially resigned on September 3 agreeing to a voluntary separation agreement with the city that pays Cox $25,000 for wages and unused vacation time. That number includes $10,000 for any potential claims of damage and relieves the city of any potential future legal liabilities.
“I’d like to say thank you to Shawn Cox for his time with the city and for the progress we’ve made,” Wimberley Mayor Gina Fulkerson said. “I wish him well on his next journey.”
Cox was originally hired on February 20, 2018.
Paul Parker was named the Interim City Administrator. Parker was previously Interim City Manager from late 2017 through February of 2018 before Cox was hired.
“He has a great demeanor,” Fulkerson said. “Every person I talked to that had ever worked with him, every mayor, city councilman or employee really spoke highly of him. He has a lot of respect. I like the way he worked with other people, and he is extremely knowledgeable. To find somebody that knew enough about Wimberley in general, knew a lot of the employees already and was able to get up to speed quickly, I felt like that was a very good interim fit for us.”
Parker has more than 40 years experience working for cities including Lufkin, Tyler, Mount Pleasant and Fort Smith, Arkansas.
The city now turns its attention to finding a more permanent solution. Parker indicated that he was open to whatever length of time the city needed, whether that be a few weeks or a few months.
“The first thing we need to do is discuss it with Paul Parker, and also have a discussion with council about questions like if we should advertise the position with the Texas Municipal League or use a search firm,” Fulkerson said. “We need to establish the process and decide whether or not we form a committee or not. I am expecting it to be a few months, but I have not been through this process before. I don’t want to rush the process.”