The City Council will meet in closed session to discuss the appointment of a new City Manager, according to a posted conference agenda.
California Government Code Section allows legislative bodies to deliberate personnel matters in private. The provision is part of the state’s Brown Act and permits confidential discussions related to the appointment, employment, performance evaluation, discipline or dismissal of public employees.
The City Council is not expected to appoint a new City Manager during the meeting.
Under Pasadena’s council-manager form of government, the city manager functions as the chief administrator responsible for implementing policies set by the mayor and City Council — a structure Márquez said he fully embraced.
The closed session comes after the City announced that City Manager Miguel Márquez will retire to focus on his family during a period of significant personal need.
“Serving the people of Pasadena has been one of the greatest honors of my career,” Márquez said in a statement in November. “I’m incredibly proud of what we’ve accomplished together, and I’m grateful for the trust and support of the City Council, our dedicated staff, and this remarkable community. In light of my father’s recent passing, my family needs me at this time, and I need to be there for them. I leave knowing the City is fiscally stable, in good hands, and is on a solid path forward.”
Márquez is expected to continue serving as city manager until a successor is appointed.
He leaves big shoes to fill.
He became Pasadena’s city manager in 2022, when the city was still recovering from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and confronting major issues including housing affordability and public safety. Early in his tenure, Márquez oversaw the hiring of a new police chief.
In the years since, he has managed billion-dollar municipal budgets, advanced housing reforms and led the city through high-profile challenges including immigration enforcement activity, rent control implementation and the response to the Eaton Fire.
In the statement announcing his retirement, city officials cited several accomplishments under Márquez’s leadership, including maintaining balanced budgets and restoring financial reserves to pre-pandemic levels, securing long-term labor agreements, funding seismic retrofit work and operational support for the Central Library, and investing millions of dollars in police, fire and street infrastructure upgrades.
The city also entered into more than $1 billion in long-term carbon-free energy contracts during his tenure, putting Pasadena on pace to exceed state carbon-neutral mandates years ahead of schedule and advancing its goal of 100% carbon-free energy by 2030. Márquez also led local response and recovery efforts following the destructive windstorm and Eaton Fire earlier this year.
Before coming to Pasadena, Márquez served as a California appellate justice and as chief operating officer of Santa Clara County.
Despite his résumé, he often stressed humility and local engagement, saying early in his tenure that he wanted “to listen, with humility, and learn what are the issues in this community,” while avoiding “out-of-town solutions.”
Colleagues have described his leadership style as collaborative and data-driven, crediting his focus on municipal operations, City Charter governance and long-term planning, as well as his reliance on the city’s roughly 2,400 employees and elected leadership to carry out civic priorities.
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