Former Sunnyside City Manager Mike Gonzalez announced Monday on LinkedIn that he was offered back his job at the city.
It’s unclear whether he’ll accept the position. He told the Tri-City Herald that his attorney is reviewing the offer.
The news comes six months after the Sunnyside City Council voted in a split decision to fire him.
The council placed Gonzalez on paid leave last June and then voted three months later to terminate his contract without cause.
“I’m flattered to get the offer,” Gonzalez wrote in a statement to the Herald.
“My work has always spoken for itself — more than $5 million in grants in one year for infrastructure. I am also extremely proud of my community outreach. I worked closely with businesses, in particular in the Latino community,” he said.
“I am extremely happy and at peace in my current professional life, and just extremely thankful to God I’ve been vindicated as a professional.”
In September, the council cited the findings of an internal investigation in its decision to fire Gonzalez, but the report wasn’t released until after Gonzalez’s termination.
The scope of the investigation focused on whether Gonzalez’s complaints against Councilwoman Theresa Hancock had merit and whether city policies were violated. It was not a criminal investigation.
The report was eventually released in October.
The Spokane-based attorney hired to conduct the investigation, Thaddeus O’Sullivan, ultimately found that most of the accusations from both parties were “unfounded” because they did not violate specific city policies or were based on accounts from people who were not directly involved.
Points of tension
Gonzalez was hired as Sunnyside’s city manager in July 2024 after serving as Franklin County’s administrator and previously with the city of Pasco.
Hancock, a former city council member and liquor store owner, was appointed in March 2025 to fill a vacancy on the council.
Gonzalez and Hancock quickly were at odds with each other, with Gonzalez accusing Hancock of harassment and discrimination and Hancock accusing Gonzalez of misconduct.
One major point of tension was after Hancock made more than 60 detailed public records requests that required Sunnyside to close City Hall for a day last May so that city staff could fill the request for her.
The investigation report states that one of Hancock’s requests contained 32 sub-requests requiring 40 hours of staff time to respond, but “based on the records provided in response, the 40 staff hours estimate appears exaggerated.”
New council, city manager
Since October, there have been several leadership changes in the Yakima Valley community of about 16,300.
Former Councilwoman Vicky Frausto was selected as Sunnyside’s new mayor in January, replacing Dean Broersma who did not run for reelection. Frausto and Julia Hart were the only two who voted last fall to keep Gonzalez.
Four seats were voted on in the November general election.
- Leticia Zesati was elected over Hancock, the incumbent, for the District 1 seat.
- Tom Dolan was elected to represent District 2. Broersma previously held the seat. Frausto won her seat in District 3.
- Ramon Chavez overcame incumbent Vicky Ripley in District 4.
- On March 2, the council offered Rosylen Oglesby the position as its interim city manager.
The Yakima Herald-Republic reported that Oglesby previously worked as Yakima assistant city manager from April 2022 to August 2024 before moving to her home state of Virginia to take a job as city manager of the city of Franklin.
Jim Bridges, who was the interim city manager in Gonzalez’s absence, resigned at the end of January. Sunnyside Police Chief Rob Layman held the position before Oglesby was appointed.
Larissa Babiak, covering Latinx issues at the Tri-City Herald, is with the Washington State Murrow Fellowship, a local news program supported by state legislators.