3 of Pasco’s top leaders have quit in 3 months. City’s attorney may be next
Three top leaders for the city of Pasco have resigned since December and now the city’s contracted lawyer says he is quitting.
Attorney Eric Ferguson’s law office Kerr Ferguson Law has provided the city legal services since 1995. But now he’s given the city notice that he plans to end the contract on May 31 because the workload has become too much.
The council planned a special public meeting at 7 p.m. Monday at City Hall to weigh two options:
- Accept Ferguson’s resignation.
- Ask him to reconsider and continue providing legal services to the city — though it’s unclear what the city will need to offer for Ferguson to continue.
Ferguson could not be reached by the Tri-City Herald on Friday about the issue.
Last week, Ferguson told the city council he’s willing to continue but he needs more staff, and he asked for better communication and direction from the council and Pasco city staff.
The contract with Kerr Ferguson Law is supposed to last through September 2026.
Now, the city also is considering whether to create its own city attorney’s office, like many other larger cities, instead of contracting with a law firm.
Debate over legal services
The council took an initial step last week and approved an amendment to its 2025-26 biennial budget, setting aside money to hire a city attorney, an assistant city attorney and an administrative staff member.
If the council decides to move ahead with an in-house legal team, it’s expected to cost the city $800,000 in 2025 and 2026, and $680,000 annually after 2026.
The money would cover salaries and benefits, technology, operation costs, recruitment and interim legal services.
Last week, the city council approved setting aside the money in a 4-3 split vote, with Mayor Pete Serrano, Mayor Pro Tem David Milne and Councilman Leo Perales opposed.
“I’ve been supportive of exploring this issue” of creating an in-house legal department, said Serrano, who is an attorney in private practice.
“As I’ve put time reviewing and looking at how it operates, I don’t know that I support (the in-house legal services) model. That said, we’re left in a tremendous pickle with an expiring contract,” he said.
Interim City Manager Dave Zabell, who was just hired to fill in after the recent resignation of City Manager Adam Lincoln, recommended the council not act too hastily.
“The (city attorney) position is incredibly important to the city,” Zabell said.
“From my perspective, given the import of this position, it probably should be a decision that the council and the new city manager make, rather than myself as the interim.”
He proposed the council first hire a permanent city manager, who can then hire a city attorney and any additional staff.
Zabell was Pasco’s city manager for eight years before he retired in October 2022.
He told the council he expects the city could be able to hire its next city manager within the next seven months.
City leaders leave
In the last three months, the city manager, a economic development director and a long-time administrator all have resigned. Two of the three reported leaving for career opportunities.
- December 2024: Former digital media administrator Jon Funfar left the city for a new communications role at the Hanford site. Funfar worked at the city for 13 years.
- January 2025: Adam Lincoln resigned as city manager to take over as the Port of Pasco executive director. Lincoln will start at the port in March. The Pasco City Council terminated Lincoln’s employment early, exercising an early release clause of Lincoln’s contract. Lincoln joined Pasco in 2020 as deputy city manager.
- February 2025: Jacob Gonzalez, director of community and economic development, announced he’d left his job in a post on LinkedIn. It’s unclear whether Gonzalez is taking a new job.
Editor’s Note: This article has been updated to state that Councilman Leo Perales voted against the budget amendment in a 4-3 split vote. Councilman Charles Grimm voted in favor of the amendment.
This story was originally published February 24, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
