National City has a permanent city manager for the first time in more than a year.
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The City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to appoint Douglas Schulze as city manager and Heidi Skinner as city attorney, both effective June 17. The dual appointments close a turbulent chapter that saw six individuals cycle through the city manager’s office in three years and left the South County city operating without stable executive leadership since April 2025.
Schulze’s three-year contract sets his base salary at $300,000 annually. Skinner, who has served as interim city attorney since February, was appointed to a three-year agreement at $265,000 annually, with guaranteed 4% raises after years one and two contingent on satisfactory performance reviews.
The instability traces back to May 2023, when City Manager Brad Ralston departed in what Mayor Ron Morrison described as a routine transition. His intended permanent replacement, Armando Vergara, died of a heart attack two days after being hired.
Ben Martinez followed, serving first as interim and then being hired permanently in December 2023, before being pushed out in April 2025 over what Councilmember Marcus Bush previously called mismanagement, including the mishandling of employee investigations. Three interim or acting appointments — Scott Huth, Police Chief Alejandro Hernandez and Director of Public Works Stephen Manganiello — followed before Schulze was selected.
Jeremy Day, president of the National City Firefighters, told the council the frequent turnover in leadership had forced staff to repeatedly reorient to incoming leaders and called for Schulze to work with the teams in place, who he described as “very, very strong, dedicated, committed.”
Karla Apalategui, president of the city’s municipal employees union, said the union participated in the interview process and backed the hire.
“Hopefully, we have a permanent city manager and we can just get stability for our members, for our city, for our residents, for our businesses, and for you guys,” Apalategui told the council. “You guys also need that.”
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Schulze comes to National City with over three decades in municipal management, most recently as city manager of Banning, from October 2018 to March 2025.
Morrison noted that long tenures in city management have become increasingly rare nationally, and said Schulze’s track record of staying five to seven years in each city stood out.
“Ten or 15 years ago, that wouldn’t sound that good,” Morrison said. “In today’s world, that’s pretty doggone good.”
After the vote, Schulze addressed the council, staff and audience, pledging to be “accessible, transparent and responsive.”
“Public service is about earning trust every day and that begins with clear communication, honest collaboration, and accountability for results,” he said. “I will work hard to ensure National City continues moving forward in a way that reflects community priorities and strengthens confidence in local government.”
The city attorney vote drew warm remarks from across the dais.
“I love being here,” Skinner told the council after the vote. “I can’t wait to work with you, Doug. I’m excited for the future.”
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