Morgan Hill Assistant City Manager for Administrative Services Christina Turner is slated to assume the top administrator position by the end of this month. She was selected Sept. 6 in a 4 to 1 vote by the City Council. The city is working on a contract now and expects to finalize it by Sept. 27.
Councilman Rich Constantine was the lone no vote during the council’s closed session. Constantine believes Turner would do a “fantastic job” as city manager, but he accused the council of selecting her over other candidates because she’s a woman.
“I don’t like when people are picked because of their race or gender,” he said. “That’s where the conversation went, and seemed to be stopped.”
Turner was hired last year from the City of Gilroy. In just 18 months, she has demonstrated a deep passion and familiarity with Morgan Hill, one councilwoman said.
The current top administrator Steve Rymer is leaving at the end of the month, having accepted a job as City Administrator of Rochester, Minnesota.