The City of Dallas opened its doors this weekend to give residents the chance to meet and interact with the three finalists vying for the top administrative job: City manager.
The public was invited to attend three meet-and-greet sessions scheduled this weekend at locations across the city, as previously announced by The Dallas Express. The sessions on Saturday hoped to provide an opportunity for the public to hear directly from the candidates and ask questions about their vision for Dallas’ future, yet still left some major questions lingering about the whole selection process, and overall future of the city.
The three finalists who were first announced last month, include: Kimberly Tolbert, William Johnson and Mario Lara.
Tolbert is no stranger to Dallas City Hall. She has been serving as the interim city manager since May 2024. Considered to be the most favored candidates, by far, Tolbert also previously served as deputy city manager and chief of staff to the city manager.
William Johnson, has previously served as assistant city manager for Fort Worth since 2019. Johnson has also worked in Atlanta and Baltimore in various smaller administrative roles, including Deputy Chief Operating Officer and Public Works Commissioner.
Mario Lara is an assistant city manager in Sacramento. Lara has spent his career in California’s municipal government, with previous roles in Riverside and San Bernardino counties.
“I am an immigrant with humble beginnings, I was born in Belize in Central America. I was raised by parents who were educators…from them I learned the importance of integrity, the importance of service to others, and hard work,” Lara said. Lara would go on to mention his family, and his sole focus on this job in Texas, saying, “I want to be very clear, I am not pursuing any other positions than the city manager of Dallas… I am only focused here.”
“I am aware of the challenges that exist here in Dallas, as the media has reported extensively on it, but I think with collaboration, dedication and creative thinking we can implement solutions that wills serve all residents,” Lara told DX.
Each session on Saturday began with a brief presentation from the candidates, followed by a Q&A period where residents can ask questions and share their thoughts. However, some questions about the candidates past, and the overall selection process by the firm Baker-Tilly still remain unanswered.
Tolbert pivoted away from answering any questions about the selection process being potentially rigged in her favor, as previously covered in a report by DX. Yet, she immediately dove into her speech with a stark difference in confidence compared to the other candidates at city hall.
“This is a full circle moment for me, I came here as a budding rose, and Dallas allowed me to bloom,” Tolbert said as her opening statement. “I have decades of experience and demonstrated success, I have been a champion for our national recognition in reducing homelessness… I have also worked to develop a 5.2 billion dollar budget that put public safety first.”
Yet, Tolbert has been a previous opponent of the recently passed Dallas HERO amendments which aim to boost city-wide accountability, and overall staffing for the Dallas Police Department. Voters recently approved Propositions S and U on Election Day, enabling citizens to sue the City and establish accountability measures for the Dallas Police and Fire Departments.
Proposition T, the only amendment from the Dallas HERO package that did not pass this year, aimed to link the Dallas City Manager’s salary to an annual review by city residents.
Records from Dallas indicate in that when Tolbert recently served as Deputy City Manager she earned a salary of $304,500. A salary that is 460.2% above the average pay for her colleagues and 324.4% higher than the national average for government employees, according to OpenPayRolls.Com.
“I am very proud of all of the accomplishments I have made, I am an inclusive and I am a decisive leader,” Tolbert would proudly boast on Saturday.
As Johnson and Lara both gave presentations showcasing their potential value to the city, neither candidate directly spoke on the voids in their resumes perceived by some critics, rather diverting to their past experience in administrative roles in California and Fort Worth.
Additionally, Johnson provided no comment to The Dallas Express about any of his personal financial history, which had been the subject of speculation among soke of Dallas’ political insiders.
Dallas City Council members are expected to vote on the final candidate later this month, with the hope of having the new city manager officially in place by February.