A lack of advertising led to a single resident speaking at the first public hearing in the search for a new city manager, a task many are calling Austin's most important.

The City Manager Search Advisory Task Force’s Chair Laura Huffman said the task of finding a new city manager was the “most important” issue in the city. Although the task force was assembled to bring the community to the table in building a candidate profile, its first attempt during a Monday morning meeting was a wash as few people knew the meeting was happening.

“City Council just approved the work plan last Thursday [June 8] so we were only able to start publicizing these meetings following the City Council meeting,” or roughly one business day separating the posting of the meeting and its 10 a.m. Monday start, Huffman said. “My hope is that we see a lot more individuals and also groups that the city works with a lot.”

Although Monday was the first publicly advertised meeting, Huffman said it was technically the second public meeting. She explained there was an organizing meeting that was “open to the public” but not publicly advertised because council had yet to approve the work plan.

Erwin Mazariegos of People Power Organization, who arrived during the final quarter of the meeting, said he was late because he just learned the meeting was taking place. There are three more public hearings scheduled.

The city manager is the most powerful position in Austin’s weak mayor form of government, but the position has been officially vacant since Oct. 1 when interim City Manager Elaine Hart took over for eight-year veteran Marc Ott, who announced in August that he accepted a job in Washington D.C.

According to Huffman, 32 percent of the city’s executive positions are vacant—or filled by an acting or interim employee—and are on hold until the city hires a new city manager, including the city’s police chief.

The process of finding a replacement has had road bumps. The council nearly chose a search firm in December but delayed any decision after deciding to broaden the job description. In February, council chose a search firm, and in April a citizen task force was appointed. Huffman said they are now working on a tight deadline and there will only be six weeks for the public to weigh in.

“The City Council has provided a timeline, and we are trying to fit that schedule,” said Huffman, who aims to help fill the position by fall.

There are other ways for the public to weigh in on the city manager search. Over the next six weeks, a majority of council districts will host in-district meetings to garner public input, and residents can also provide input at the task force’s website or call 3-1-1 and tell the operator what attributes they would value in choosing Austin’s next leader.