Eric Batista named acting Worcester city manager for indefinite term

Eric Batista, Worcester city manager

Write a Comment

By Katherine Hamilton

The Worcester City Council voted unanimously Tuesday night to appoint Assistant City Manager Eric Batista as acting city manager until a permanent city manager is appointed.

Batista will begin his term on June 1, the day after current City Manager Edward Augustus is set to resign. Batista’s term could be any length of time while the council follows the process of seeking a permanent city manager, but Mayor Joe Petty said it will likely be about six months.

The vote followed a discussion among councilors about how long Batista should serve as acting city manager, a term which was changed in the proposal from interim city manager, as the “interim” role does not exist in the city charter.

In the city charter, an acting city manager is to serve in the role until a permanent city manager is appointed.

Almost every councilor spoke highly of Batista, but there was disagreement about the length of time he should serve.

Councilor George Russell suggested a two-year contract for Batista, explaining the previous city manager search was long and messy. The last two city managers, Augustus and Michael O’Brien, served as interim city managers before taking on the role permanently.

“That’s the kind of stability we need,” Russell said.

Councilor Candy Mero-Carlson concurred: “The longer we wait to do these things, it makes our city and our residents extremely uncomfortable."

Russell put forth a motion for a two-year contract for Batista, and asked that the word “interim” be removed completely. The contract was voted down in a 2-9 vote.

On the other side, councilors Etel Haxhiaj, Khrystian King, Thu Nguyen, and Sarai Rivera urged the city leadership to take its time with the decision and ensure community input.

“I feel really, really uncomfortable already making the determination of who our city manager will be without proper process,” Haxhiaj said. “I strongly urge us, as a body, to follow the process, to have community input.”

The length of Batista’s term is unknown, as it depends on how long the council takes to choose a permanent city manager.

“It could be four months. It could be six months. It could be nine months, and that could be subject to negotiations, too,” Petty said.

Batista was appointed assistant city manager in October 2021 to serve alongside Assistant City Manager Nicole Valentine. He has worked for the City for 10 years, beginning as a project manager. He is also the director of urban innovation and the interim chief diversity officer.