Coachella to interview councilmember candidates on June 5, approves new city manager

Update 6/2/26

The city will have a special meeting on Friday, June 5 to interview the 10 candidates for the council vacancy, officials confirmed. The meeting will be held at 4:00 p.m. at the Coachella Library.

Original Report 5/28/26

COACHELLA, Calif. (KESQ) - The city of Coachella has a new city manager and could soon have a new city councilmember.

During Tuesday's meeting, which went past midnight due to discussions on the controversial data center project, councilmembers unanimously voted to appoint Gustavo J. Romo as the city's new manager.

Romo, who currently serves as the Deputy City Manager for Beaumont, will have a three-year term. He will officially start on June 15. The city has been without a permanent city manager in January 2025, with Gabriel Gonzalez and Bill Patterson serving as interim/acting city manager during that time period.

The council also discussed dates for a public hearing to interview applicants looking to fill the vacancy in the city council. There were 10 applicants for the vacancy, below is the list of names. An 11th applicant, Linda Flores, is listed as having moved out of the county, according to the city.

The hearing will be set on either Saturday, May 30, Thursday, June 4, or Friday, June 5. The date is tentative on the availability of the applicants as well as a possible venue.

There was no word on when council would vote to possibly approve the candidate. The city has until June 10 to fill the empty council seat.

Coachella is seeking to fill the seat left vacant when Dr. Frank Figueroa was appointed mayor. Figueroa replaced longtime mayor Steven Hernandez, who resigned in March after pleading guilty to a conflict of interest charge. He will also fill the position until November, finishing up the remainder of Hernandez's term

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