Jorge Cervantes named new Las Vegas city manager

Jorge Cervantes, the city of Las Vegas’ chief operations and development officer, will be its next city manager, replacing Scott Adams who is retiring in November.

The City Council on Wednesday unanimously appointed Cervantes, a city employee of more than two decades, to fill the post after conducting an internal recruitment.

Three other city executives applied to be the next top administrator. Mayor Carolyn Goodman called the candidates “outstanding city employees” and the process “very informative.”

A contract for Cervantes is expected to return to the council for a vote in early October. No city official commented on the decision and Cervantes did not speak.

He joined City Hall as a project manager in 1998. He now oversees operations and maintenance, parks and recreation and the city’s Development Services Center, according to his city biography.

Cervantes was previously the director of public works and is a licensed professional engineer in Nevada and Texas. He holds a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering and a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Texas at El Paso.

He was chosen over Tim Hacker, chief public safety services officer; Lisa Morris Hibbler, chief community services officer; and Tom Perrigo, executive director of community development.

Councilwoman Victoria Seaman previously said the next city manager needed experience with how the city operates in good and bad times, and must be able to “hit the ground running” given the historic challenges in front of the city as the coronavirus pandemic roils its budget.

Adams announced on July 8 that he would retire after three years as the city’s top administrator and more than four decades in local government.

Contact Shea Johnson at sjohnson@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0272. Follow @Shea_LVRJ on Twitter.