Austin chooses Marc Ott as new city manager

Austin chooses Marc Ott as new city manager

Written by Rachel Youens Monday, 07 January 2008

After five years at her post, city manager Toby Futrell announced in July that she would be retiring from the position at the end of May. The city’s process for recruiting a new city manager began shortly after Toby’s resignation when the city hired the firm Arcus Public to aid in its search. On Jan. 3, the city announced eight candidates: three that were already city employees, the rest from around the state and nation.

The city narrowed the list of candidates Jan. 10 after a series of face-to-face interviews down to two, Jelynne Burley and Marc Ott.

On Jan. 15 the City of Austin hosted a forum at Palmer Auditorium offering citizens, public officials and city employees the ability to meet the two finalists for city manager. After an introduction by Austin Mayor Will Wynn in which he explained the city’s process using the firm Arcus to aid in their search, both candidates were given time to address the audience.

Marc Ott spoke second, after Burley, and did not prepare a speech, saying he wanted to speak from his heart. The 52-year-old explained how he began his career 26 years ago wanting to enter the law field, but after being introduced to city managing during an internship, he concluded that not only was he good at it, but it was a role that was fundamentally necessary to a city.

“I want to conduct business in such a way that we are absolutely responsive,” Ott said, drawing cheers from parts of the crowd as he explained that he believes it is essential to have the community as part of the process.

Ott ended his speech by telling how, since the interview process had begun, his wife had been researching Austin online and he had come to a conclusion, “I want to be here, my family wants to be here,” Ott said. “Austin is the right place, and I’m the right person.”

After the forum, the council held final interviews on Jan. 16. The council made its decision the morning of Jan. 17, but an unknown source leaked early in the morning that Ott would be the selection.

“It is a historic and happy day as this council has chosen a talented and strong public administrator, Marc Ott,” Council member Sheryl Cole said. Cole is currently the only African American council member. “As he works to transition into the ebb and flow of our world-class city, we will be working with Marc to bring this community together for positive change. We now have our first African-American city manager who I believe will diligently serve our entire community.”

As city manager, Ott will be responsible for the day-to-day management of a work force of more than 12,000 employees in approximately 25 departments with a total operating budget of $2.5 billion.

Marc Ott

Current job: Assistant City Manager for the City of Fort Worth, In this position, Ott is responsible for Fort Worth’s infrastructure activities, carried out by the departments of water, transportation and public works, engineering and aviation. Ott is also responsible for promoting orderly growth. He serves as the primary staff liaison with state and regional transportation agencies, including the Texas Department of Transportation, Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, the Fort Worth Transportation Authority, the North Texas Tollway and the North Central Texas Council of Governments.

Background: Ott has served in the following positions: city administrator for Rochester Hills, Mich., city manager for Kalamazoo, Mich., deputy city manager for Kalamazoo, Mich., assistant city manager for Kalamazoo, Mich., and as administrative services officer for Grand Rapids, Mich.

Education: A Master’s degree in public administration and a Bachelor’s degree in management with a concentration in economics, both from Oakland University in Michigan.