Garland residents urge city council to cut ties with City Manager Judson Rex
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.
"The Spring Creek Preserve was destroyed, and we have MD Health Pathways coming in," resident Heather Dobrott said.
Dubrott said many residents are not in favor of the city's new partnership with MD Health Pathways and the Tap Telehealth program, which charges residents $6 a month for medical advice over text messages. The fee is added on to city utility bills unless residents opt out.
The rally happened just before a special meeting called by two council members. Rex was not in attendance.
The council met in behind closed doors in executive session. Rex's employment contract is set to expire in December; he was hired in early 2023.
On 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.
It is unclear what, if anything, was decided. Still, residents said their turnout sent a clear message.
"They need to let his contract expire and not re-sign 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.