The City Hall doors for star personnel are spinning so fast in both directions this month they had to invent an electronic scorecard yesterday to keep pace with the changes.
Two hours before last night’s unusually arresting City Council meeting, Interim City Manager Lamont Ewell, starting his first week on the third floor, fired off a blast email.
He announced, crisply, that Jeff Muir, the first, only and former Chief Financial Officer, had agreed to become the new Chief Financial Officer.
City Hall and Mr. Muir have been making eyes at each other for weeks.
A confluence of curious events — former City Manager Mark Scott’s quaking revelation two months ago that he planned to leave Culver City barely a quarter of the way through his contract and Inglewood Mayor Roosevelt Dorn’s sentencing to jail — seemed to revive Culver City’s career attractiveness.
Mr. Muir, hired from Inglewood City Hall both times, had a brief fling here that drew strongly favorable reviews. The cherry atop the pastry was that he was as well-liked as he was professionally effective.
When the quite low-key Mr. Muir disappointed City Hall late last summer by returning to Inglewood — with enhanced duties — Mr. Scott said he would double up and wear the CFO’s mantle atop his City Manager role.
Mr. Muir gave his notice to the city of Inglewood yesterday, shortly before Mr. Ewell’s email went out.
He will start/resume on Monday, April 26, a red-letter day in Culver City when the revised City Council will be seated, following next Tuesday’s election.
Although at times this spring Mr. Muir’s return looked inevitable, it took the impressive Mr. Ewell, on Day 3 of his temporary assignment, to reel him in.
Just after striking his first home run for his new team, Mr. Ewell said there are two clinching arguments for bringing back the estimable Mr. Muir:
“The city is in the unique position of facing its deepest structural deficit, and
“Mr. Muir can walk in directly with a full understanding of the situation.”
