Copyright CBS News
Tuesday night, the Garland City Council met behind closed doors to talk about the city manager's future. Before the meeting started, dozens of residents gathered at City Hall, saying it's time for him to go. Outside City Hall, their calls were hard to ignore. They said they've lost confidence in City Manager Judson Rex. "Right now, our city is struggling," resident Jason Collard said. "We have a city manager who has brought in bad ideas, bad cultures and bad consultants to try to drive his narrative." Collard said residents are frustrated for several reasons. They're accusing Rex of mismanagement, overspending, and fostering a toxic work environment. "One of my biggest concerns is the culture that he's brought into our city as far as staff and employees," he said. "Just breaks in the links of chains and as a city manager, a lot of those bucks stop with him," resident Mary Kay Starnes said. This rally happened just before a special meeting called by two council members. Rex was not in attendance. They met in executive session and told us Rex's employment contract is set to expire in December. He was hired in early 2023. Tuesday night, a city spokesperson told CBS News Texas that council members were discussing personnel matters related to the employment of the city manager, but did not go into detail. Since the meeting was held behind closed doors, it's unclear what, if anything, was decided. Still, residents say their turnout sent a clear message. "They need to let his contract expire and not resign him to a new contract," Collard said. CBS News Texas reached out to both the city manager's office and the city for comment. A spokesperson for the city says the city does not comment on personnel matters.
