SALINAS - Three dozen candidates narrowed down to one. Salinas City Manager Ray Corpuz finally announced the next fire chief on Friday.
Corpuz named Edmond Rodriguez, Stockton's current deputy fire chief, to take the helm of Salinas Fire's six stations starting next month.
To do the job, Salinas will pay him $189,972 that includes a 13 percent reduction as part of the city's concession program.
"We want a chief that's not only a good manager, but also an excellent leader and I think Edmond will be that," Corpuz said.
Not only does he bring more than 26 years of firefighting experience, but Rodriguez is filling a big void for Salinas that hasn't had much stability in recent years.
The previous fire chief, Kim Raddatz, was hired in April 2009, only to leave a year later.
Since then, the city's fires, like the one that ripped through Denham's Plastics last month, were managed by interim chiefs.
"Basically, it has been with a leader, but not a leader that will be around for some time," Corpuz said.
Corpuz said he hopes the new fire chief will be here long term and bring balance to the department.
"I believe he will be. His commitment is that. I certainly brought up the issues of recent fire chiefs and people who stayed about a year and how that can be very disruptive to the fire service," he said. "I'm trying to make sure that that doesn't occur again."
Pending a final background and processing review, Rodriguez will start on Sept. 24.
