Anaheim weighs city manager pick after resignation

Anaheim City Council members are expected to meet behind closed doors Monday and Tuesday at 8 a.m. to discuss appointing a new city manager, according to Voice of OC.

The appointment would put a new top administrator in charge of Orange County’s largest city and a budget of nearly $2.6 billion at a time when Anaheim is still dealing with fallout from city hall corruption scrutiny and unresolved Angel Stadium issues.

Voice of OC reported that council members are scheduled to deliberate in closed session Monday and Tuesday as they consider who will replace former City Manager Jim Vanderpool.

Vanderpool resigned in February, about seven months before the scheduled meetings, after questions emerged about an Anaheim Chamber of Commerce-paid trip to Lake Havasu. The questions were tied to the period before city officials voted on a chamber-backed Angel Stadium deal, Voice of OC reported.

His departure came as Anaheim continued to face scrutiny over resort-interest ties examined by FBI agents and the broader city hall corruption scandal. The FBI probe into Anaheim became public in 2022, according to Voice of OC.

About a month after Vanderpool resigned, council members voted to hire a consulting firm to carry out a nationwide search for a replacement, Voice of OC reported. Vanderpool had been among Anaheim’s longest-serving city managers over a 15-year period.

The next city manager is expected to inherit major stadium-related questions. Angels owner Arte Moreno is expected to finalize a deal early next year to sell the team to Los Angeles Rams owner Stan Kroenke, and residents are still waiting for results of an Angel Stadium condition assessment first approved four years ago, according to Voice of OC.

The closed-door discussions could set the course for Anaheim’s top administrative post as the city manages budget, stadium and ethics-related pressures.