The appointment comes because the position—or an administrative equivalent—is required to be filled by a city manager within 60 days of taking office, according to the Missouri City charter. Jordan, the city’s chief operations officer, will fill the role in cases where Missouri City’s interim city manager, Sedrick Cole, is either absent or disabled, according to the charter.
“I bring a unique skill set to the table and I’m qualified to do the job,” said Jordan during the June 13 meeting.
Cole has served as interim city manager since his 30-day appointment on May 3, when the Missouri City City Council fired former city manager Charles “Tink” Jackson following an investigation conducted by city-hired law firm DeDe Church & Associates. His contract was then extended “until a permanent city manager is hired,” the council determined during a June 6 meeting.
Jordan, meanwhile, has served as Missouri City’s chief operations officer since his appointment by City Council during a March 7 special session. Jordan was hired alongside a new deputy city manager to support Jackson, who had been running the city solo since his hire in early December 2021.
Jordan came to Missouri City with more than 30 years of experience serving at the federal, state and local levels of government, according to the city. He last served as city manager in Bandera, Texas.
Riley, in her remarks, raised concerns about Jordan’s lack of tenure and familiarity with Missouri City operations in case he would need to step in and take the reigns of the city’s leadership.
“Although I think David is attempting to transition and help the city, just from the feedback I’ve heard from the community and staff members, there is concern that he [David] has not been here long enough to take on that particular role,” Riley said.
Council Member Lynn Clouser, meanwhile, questioned if the acting city manager position was advertised for more candidates. Cole said that that was not the case.
Mayor Pro Tem Jeffrey Boney, who had similar concerns about Jordan prior to learning about his background and experience with past city leadership, pushed for the rest of the City Council and city leadership to always hold high standards, no matter the position.
“I think it’s important for us to look at who we’re putting in place and the people that have the skillset and qualifications to run our city,” Boney said. “Whether they’ve been here two months, three months, five months, eight years, I don’t care.”
