DANNHAUS ANNOUNCES RETIREMENT, PHELPS TO MOVE TO CITY HALL
Brenham Assistant City Manager Kyle Dannhaus can provide a guided tour around his hometown, pointing out all the things that have changed over the years. What once was pasture land is now home to Hohlt Park; Fireman’s Park sports a new and improved look; and local swimmers have found a haven at Blue Bell Aquatic Center.
Dannhaus is proud of the improvements made in Brenham over the past 30 years – and rightfully so. As the long-time assistant city manager, Dannhaus has had a hand in shaping the future of Brenham. His influence extends beyond park facility upgrades and includes major public facility infrastructure improvements.
And now he’s ready to make some changes of his own. Dannhaus plans to retire in July, after more than three decades of service to the City of Brenham. Starting as the building inspector in 1984, Dannhaus rose through the ranks to be named assistant city manager in 2002 by City Manager Terry Roberts.
“Mayor Schwartz, Mayor Tate and our other elected officials have had a vision for this community and I’ve been pleased to be part of it. We’ve had some great times, some tough times yet we’ve accomplished a lot. I’m proud to have been part of it and to have given back to Brenham,” Dannhaus said.
Recently the Brenham Assistant City Manager for the past 13 years informed City Manager Roberts of his plan to retire this summer and to go into the construction business. Roberts said Dannhaus has been a valued employee to the City organization for more than 30 years and that he will be missed.
“Kyle has been a valuable member of the City management team for a long time,” Roberts said. “He brought to his job a broad knowledge and expertise in many facets of municipal work.” Having been a lifelong resident of Brenham, Dannhaus had a strong sense of the community’s interest and expectations as it related to providing city services.
His retirement means the face of city government will look differently for the first time in many years. City Manager Terry Roberts, who has served since 2001, plans to restructure the organization somewhat. Kyle’s replacement will have a focus on General Fund operations.
When vacancies occur in any organization it is an opportunity to assess the situation and evaluate options for filing the position, Roberts said. “After several weeks of going through that assessment, I have decided to fill the Assistant City Manager for General Government with Police Chief Rex Phelps,” Roberts announced.
“Rex will focus on leading our General Fund departments while two other senior leaders of our City management team will continue to effectively lead their areas of responsibility as well as serving in a group manager or assistant role. These two veteran leaders include the City’s Chief Financial Officer, Carolyn Miller, who will continue to lead the Finance and Administrative group of departments and Lowell Ogle who heads up the City’s Utility Fund operations,” said City Manager Roberts
“I have asked Rex to take on this new assignment because of I have seen him provide successful leadership to our police organization. Rex is a seasoned manager and a proven leader. He is a known asset to me, having served effectively as police chief in Brenham for the past six years. I believe the Police Department will continue to operate with a culture of strong public service to this community in the future,” Roberts added.
“Since Kyle’s departure will not be until this summer, there will be a transitional phase for both the City Manager’s office and the Police Department. Rex’s focus will be in the General Fund area coordinating many of the functions in that area; serving as the group manager for those departments,” the City Manager explained.
Phelps has been chief here since 2009. He has been instrumental in reducing crime in this community as well implementing a leadership philosophy that effectively develops his officers and staff. Phelps is a proven leader and the management skills he has used to develop our police force will be an asset city wide.
“We believe firmly in servant leadership in the police department. I ‘m very proud and confident in the men and woman of the Brenham Police Department and will always be thankful to them for their hard work and dedication. This is our town and it is through a community partnership that we are able to keep a high quality of life here. I’m excited to serve in this new capacity and to learn from and work with the staff in the various departments within the city.
My personal mission is to continuously work to keep Brenham a great place to live, visit and conduct business,” Phelps said. “I would like to thank the Mayor, Council and City Manager for their confidence in me and I will work diligently to maintain that confidence.”
Dannhaus, a lifelong resident of Brenham, has been a fixture at City Hall for more than three decades. He joined the city organization as the Building Official in 1984 before later moving into administrative roles in both Public Works and Public Utilities. Dannhaus served four years as the Director of Public Utilities until being named as the Assistant City Manager in 2002.
Phelps also has a 30 year track record of public service in Texas cities. Before moving to Brenham six years ago to head the Police Department, he spent many years in law enforcement supervision in the Dallas Fort Worth area including two years as Chief of Police in Forest Hill.
Dannhaus’ planned retirement is in the July/August time period. The early announcement of his plans gives us an opportunity to have a smoother transition as we move into the beginning of the FY16 budget process.
“I am appreciative of Kyle providing us a quality amount of time for a transition. He has significant institutional knowledge that can be shared with others as we make our organizational changes.” Roberts said.
Phelps will share his time between the City Manager’s office and the Police Department during the next several weeks getting up to speed on ongoing projects and activities with the General Fund departments. Roberts will also designate someone to fill the Chief’s position at the Police Department on an interim basis as Phelps begins to devote more time to his new assignment. One of the command supervisors in the Brenham Police Department will be designated to serve as acting or interim police chief.
“We applaud Kyle’s service to the City of Brenham and his years of dedicated service,” Roberts said. “We are excited about the new opportunity ahead for Chief Phelps as he expands his role at the City. We are especially excited by the senior management team that now includes Phelps, Miller and Ogle who will lead the City Organization in its new chapter,” Roberts added.
“We have talented and dedicated public servants throughout all areas of the City organization. Our staff members are committed to their roles as public servants providing public serve to our citizens, businesses and visitors. Our dedicated workforce is why it is a joy to come to work every day,” Roberts concluded.
