SOUTH TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — In the City of South Tucson, the Interim City Manager, Veronica Moreno, has been appointed four times since 2015. At the most recent city council meeting, a community member shared their thoughts during the call to audience.
"Why don't we have a city manager? Somebody that can be held accountable to our accounting, to our deficits,” said Diane Sears, a South Tucson business owner.
The mayor decided to add an item to the next meeting's agenda to allow the council to appoint someone to the role.
KGUN9 spoke with the Interim City Manager to hear her thoughts.
“The request for the mayor was to initiate a recruitment process. I am happy to help the council move through that process. We've done it in the past. We've actually done a national search,” said Moreno.
In addition to the Interim City Manager position, Moreno also serves as HR Director and City Clerk. This was also brought up during the recent council meeting.
“She can't continue to wear three hats, even though she's a wonderful person. If she's not qualified as a city manager, then I think we need to decide if she goes back to being a city clerk or HR director,” said Diane Sears during the call to audience.
After the meeting, KGUN9 spoke with South Tucson Mayor Paul Diaz about his decision to appoint a city manager. He explained why he believed why it should be someone who doesn't have two other roles.
“Right now, we're scattered. We're all over the place. Lawsuit here, economic development there, budget, everything. Who's handling that, one person?”
When asked if Moreno would accept the position as the official City Manager, she said she would take on the role if the mayor and council appointed her. She said she would also continue to work as the HR Director and City Manager.
“I was born and raised here and I have vested interest in this community. I'm committed and I want the city to move forward. Having served in these capacities helps the city. It helps the council, it helps the community. It always helps to have the institutional knowledge of what's been done in the past and what can we do moving forward,” said Moreno.
Councilmember Roxanna Valenzuela said she would appoint Moreno as the City Manager.
“She does a very well job at balancing, and working with the staff. I've been very happy working under her leadership. I can see that the city is moving forward. I feel very positive that we're going to keep her as our City Manager,” said Valenzuela.
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Reyna Preciado is a reporter for KGUN 9, she joined the KGUN 9 team in July of 2022 after graduating Arizona State University. Share your story ideas with Reyna by emailing reyna.preciado@kgun9.com or by connecting on Instagram, or Twitter.
