Daniel Ortiz-Hernandez

City Manager Daniel Ortiz-Hernandez announced Wednesday that he is resigning his position with the City of Webster City to take a similar position in California.

In his letter of resignation to the mayor and City Council, Ortiz-Hernandez said the move would bring his family closer to relatives.

“I am grateful for the opportunity and trust I was given to serve the City of Webster City,” he wrote in the letter. “It is an amazing community with many great qualities and opportunities in the future.

“I hope the community can maintain the positive momentum and move forward,” he said.

Ortiz-Hernandez’ last day will be Aug. 31. He said in the coming weeks he would work to help transition the current city projects and indicated afterwards he would be available to provide insight or answer questions if need be.

“It has been a pleasure to work with each of you, our employees and the residents of Webster City,” he said in his letter. “I wish everyone the very best.”

Ortiz-Hernandez came to Webster City in late October 2016 from Kimball, Nebraska. The city conducted a nationwide search that brought several candidates to the community for interviews.

Mayor John Hawkins praised Ortiz-Hernandez for his work as city manager.

“He came in with fresh ideas and got everyone on a good footing,” Hawkins said. “We’ve made lots of progress.”

Hawkins said the council will likely bring back GovHR USA of Northbrook, Illinois, the search firm used to hire Ortiz-Hernandez. The contract with the firm featured a guarantee that if the candidate did not stay in the position for 24 months, the search could be reopened.

“And we’re not at 24 months yet,” Hawkins said. Hawkins said the city would pay the minimum $5,000 plus expenses to restart the search. GovHR USA was chosen to conduct the search in April 2016 with a low bid of $25,400 for services and expenses.