Bell Hired as New City Manager of La Grange

La Grange City Council voted Monday night to hire Fred Franklin Bell of Los Fresnos as the next La Grange City Manager.

Bell most recently served as assistant city manager for San Benito, a city of 24,250 in the Rio Grande Valley. He comes with an extensive background in law enforcement. He previously served as police chief in Arcola, a city south of Houston.

The City Council set Bell’s starting salary at $150,000 annually. He will begin work on March 27.

Bell’s hiring brings to an end what has been quite the search to replace longtime La Grange city manager Shawn Raborn, who retired last fall after nearly three decades overseeing city operations The city council negotiations with at least two other city manager candidates fell through before they came to an agreement with Bell, who was one of six original semifinalists for the job identified and interviewed by the council back in November.