Bartlesville councilors clash over how next city manager will be chosen
Andy Dossett | The Wiley Post
Sept 16, 2026
The simmering dispute over Bartlesville's search for its next city manager spilled onto social media Wednesday, with two sitting city councilors publicly criticizing the hiring process and clashing over how concerns about City Hall should be handled.
Ward 1 Councilor Tim Sherrick posted a video to his public Facebook page around midnight Tuesday outlining concerns about the process planned for Sept. 22, when five internal applicants are scheduled to be interviewed.
Bartlesville City Councilors Tim Sherrick and Aaron Kirkpatrick traded criticism in dueling Facebook videos Wednesday as disagreements over the city's search for its next city manager spilled onto social media.
By Wednesday morning, Ward 4 Councilor Aaron Kirkpatrick had responded with a video of his own.
Kirkpatrick acknowledged concerns about the proposed interview process but criticized Sherrick for taking those concerns public before seeking answers from city staff. He also made broader allegations about Sherrick and some City Council candidates who have criticized the current council.
Both videos are included with this story so readers can hear the councilors' arguments in full.
Sherrick says council is being sidelined
Sherrick said the city's Human Resources Department told council members how the Sept. 22 interviews would be conducted, rather than asking the council to set the procedure.
According to Sherrick, council members would interview the five internal applicants in three groups, with fewer than a quorum participating at any one time. He said HR would provide predetermined questions and a scoring rubric, while councilors would have to submit any additional questions in advance.
Sherrick also objected to the proposed handling of interview materials and notes.
"This puts the city council, who has the authority to appoint the next city manager, on the sideline," Sherrick said. "We will be observers."
Bartlesville operates under a council-manager form of government, with the City Council responsible for appointing the city manager.
Sherrick tied the latest disagreement to his previous request for an independent investigation into former City Manager Mike Bailey's Aug. 7 resignation and his unsuccessful proposal to immediately open the search for Bailey's successor to outside applicants.
He encouraged residents to contact their council representatives about the interview process.
Kirkpatrick criticizes Sherrick's approach
Kirkpatrick's response included one significant point of agreement.
"Frankly, when I saw it, I didn't love it either," Kirkpatrick said of the proposed interview process.
Kirkpatrick said that after learning of the procedure, he contacted city staff to ask why it was structured that way rather than criticizing it publicly.
He said staff told him the proposed structure was intended, at least in part, to protect the identities of internal applicants.
Kirkpatrick then went further, alleging that applicants had reason to fear harassment from Sherrick and City Council candidates he described as aligned with him.
"They don't want them to be harassed online and in person," Kirkpatrick said, specifically naming Sherrick and "the council candidates that he is running with."
Kirkpatrick also accused Sherrick and some candidates challenging sitting council members of coordinating politically. He alleged that people within that group had targeted city officials and employees through online activity and public-records requests.
Ward 1 Councilor Tim Sherrick speaks with City Council candidates Josh Lock, Amanda (Wier) Veley and Eddie Collins following the Sept. 8, 2026, Bartlesville City Council meeting. All three candidates are challenging sitting council members in the Nov. 3 election.
Andy Dossett | The Wiley Post
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He further alleged that some candidates had discussed city employees they would seek to remove if the council makeup changed after the November election.
Candidates challenging sitting council members have frequently been observed speaking with Sherrick after City Council meetings. Challengers have also spoken with other sitting council members after meetings, and some of those exchanges have become contentious.
Kirkpatrick said discussions are underway about whether to change the interview procedure to protect applicants' identities while giving council members greater participation in the process.
Kirkpatrick also challenged Sherrick's handling of his earlier call for an independent investigation into Bailey's resignation.
Interim City Manager Laura Sanders had previously told Sherrick that the council could initiate an independent investigation through majority action and that she would place the matter on a council agenda if directed to do so.
Kirkpatrick made the same point Wednesday, arguing that Sherrick could have sought council action on the investigation himself.
"We didn't do it because Tim didn't put it on the agenda," Kirkpatrick said.
Kirkpatrick said the other four councilors instead independently took their questions about Bailey's resignation to city staff. He said they received answers and reached their own conclusions based on those inquiries.
"We didn't call for an open investigation, because four of us went to city staff and asked them the questions that everybody wanted to know," Kirkpatrick said. "And got our answers."
City manager search unfolds amid council election
The exchange adds another layer of conflict to the search for Bailey's permanent replacement.
Bailey resigned effective Aug. 7, and the council later appointed Assistant City Manager Laura Sanders as interim city manager while it determines who will permanently fill the position.
At the same time, candidates challenging sitting council members have regularly attended council meetings and spoken during public comment. Several challengers have also been seen gathering with Sherrick after meetings.
The city manager search is now unfolding alongside a contested City Council election and continuing questions surrounding Bailey's abrupt resignation.
The council ultimately has the authority to appoint Bartlesville's next city manager, making the dispute over how candidates are interviewed more than a procedural disagreement. It is also part of a broader debate over how that decision should be made, how transparent the process should be and how much influence the current council should have before voters choose who will occupy City Hall after the November election.
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