BART To Shell Out More Than $100K In Search for New GM
OAKLAND (KCBS) - The financial fallout appears to continue for BART, following the recent and very public - not to mention expensive - exit of general manager Dorothy Dugger.
Dugger submitted a resignation letter earlier this month, and while that wasn't much of a surprise - considering a majority of the transit agency's board of directors had voted earlier this year behind closed doors to fire her - Dugger's nearly $1 million payout did catch plenty of people by surprise.
Naturally, it was understood that BART's board of directors would have to launch a search for Dugger's replacement. Now comes word that the search for a new GM will come at a cost of more than $100,000.
Specifically, this week the board approved payment in the amount of $110,000 to a search firm tasked with finding the transit agency's next general manager.
The board also approved $18,000 in relocation costs, if the candidate to fill Dugger's shoes ends up being somebody from outside of the Bay Area.
KCBS' Bob Melrose Reports:
To be clear, the board has yet to pick the headhunting firm that will handle the search, but has already made clear what it expects of the firm that ultimately does win the assignment.
"We want to make sure we get the right person, but we don't want to be in a rush to get the right person," explained BART chief spokesperson Linton Johnson. "So, we're going to do this methodically and as fast as we can but if it stalls for whatever reason, it's because we're trying to do it right."
It was hoped that a new general manager would be picked within the next few months.
"That person is going to be a very important person for the organization," Johnson reasoned, "and I think at least this board president sees that person as more of a people person, not to say that the last one wasn't but he just wants to make sure this is somebody that is picked by the people, not just the board."
"The board president, Bob Franklin, has indicated that he wants this to be as transparent as possible," Johnson continued. "He wants the input of many different communities so that way the hiring of the general manager is more of a community thing versus just a BART board thing"
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