Flower Mound will restart its search for a new town manager, according to direction given at a July 15 meeting.

"We need to make this a priority," Mayor Derek France said at the Town Council's strategic planning session.

Council members directed staff to reconnect with the consultants who conducted the initial search last year after former Town Manager Jimmy Stathatos resigned to take a job in Bedford. Town Council approved a contract in September 2020 to hire a search firm and received 45 applications, according to a staff memo.

Several finalists were interviewed in January, but the council voted instead to have Debra Wallace continue serving as the interim town manager. Wallace had been Flower Mound's deputy town manager and chief financial officer before being named the interim town manager.

The contract with the consultants allows the town to resume its town manager search and "only incur expenses for the recruitment," according to a staff memo.