AUSTIN (Talk1370.com) -- Austin City Manager T.C. Broadnax has named a new assistant city manager that will oversee the city's public safety portfolio - and it's a name he's very familiar with from his time in Dallas.
In a memo to city council members Thursday, Broadnax said he has appointed Eddie Garcia to the role, effective November 4. He will oversee Austin Fire, Austin Police, and Austin-Travis County EMS, as well as the Downtown Austin Community Court, the city's Forensic Science department, and the Homeland Security and Emergency Management division.
"Eddie brings more than 30 years of experience in public safety that includes policies, procedures, and initiatives that were implemented to build community trust, increase transparency, as well as embrace fair and impartial constitutional policing while maintaining police activity," Broadnax said.
He'll fill the role previously held by Bruce Mills, who retired from the city last month. Garcia will be one of five assistant city managers working under Broadnax.
Garcia has served as the police chief in Dallas since February 2021, after spending 29 years working in law enforcement in San Jose, California. He became chief there in 2016, prior to moving to Dallas.
According to reporting from our sister station NewsRadio 1080 KRLD, Dallas officials gave Garcia a significant salary boost earlier this year, after his name was linked to openings in both Austin and Houston. In Dallas, he was making a base salary of more than $306,000 with a retention bonus of $10,000 every six months.
He'll work alongside newly appointed police chief Lisa Davis, who began her duties here in Austin earlier this month.
"In Dallas he introduced a comprehensive Use of Force Dashboard providing transparency and accountability, brought in experts to study use of force, worked with criminologists to develop a Crime Plan and supported the formation of a Community Advisory Board to ensure ongoing dialogue with residents, city leaders, and police associations," said Broadnax.
Garcia is also currently the president of the Major Cities Chiefs Association, a professional organization of police executives from across the United States and Canada.
Garcia is the third top-level employee to follow Broadnax to Austin from his time in Dallas; in May, Broadnax announced that his former deputy city manager Jon Fortune would take the same role in Austin, while his former chief of staff Genesis D. Gavino would serve as a special assistant to the city manager.