Taylor’s City Hall saw some recent changes with the sudden departure of a newly hired tourism director after only a few weeks on the job and the promotions of two high-level employees.
As of Oct. 1, Tyler Bybee and LaShon Gros have been named as managing directors, a new position that elevates them in city administration, officials said Monday.
“We’re thrilled to have LaShon and Tyler join the city-management staff,” said City Manager Brian LaBorde.
The city is also looking for another downtown and tourism director after Sean Johnson submitted his voluntary resignation Sept. 24. He has already left the position.
A spokesman said the city plans to fill the vacancy.
Johnson started Aug. 25, relocating to Taylor from Cleveland, Mississippi. He previously told the Taylor Press he was renting a small farmhouse on rural land to get a feel for being a Texan and learning about the life and culture of the Lone Star State.
The downtown and tourism director position is a new one for Taylor, evolving from the previous role of Main Street manager.
The job includes acting as a liaison between City Hall and downtown businesses.
Goals include preparing the city to capitalize on tourism growth predicted to happen when several large projects including the Samsung Austin Semiconductor foundry are completed, as well as the arrival of the University of Texas satellite campus.
Meanwhile, the promotions of Bybee and Gros allow them to take up responsibilities which once would have been under the deputy city manager, a position which has been vacant since Jeffrey Jenkins left to become the city manager of Wichita Falls in June.
Bybee’s move from parks and recreation director to managing director of community services means he will oversee the library, animal services and communications departments in addition to parks and recreation.
Gros moves from director of human resources to managing director of administrative services. She will now supervise the city clerk and finance departments in addition to the Human Resources Department.
“Their years of public service have prepared them well for these expanded leadership roles, and I am confident they will continue to serve the city of Taylor with dedication, vision and professionalism,” LaBorde said.
City cites cost-savings
A statement from the city indicates creating the new positions and eliminating the vacant one increases Taylor’s operational efficiency with no additional cost.
Taylor spokesman Jerrod Kingery said the promotions will save the city more than $100,000 versus hiring another deputy city manager.
According to openrecords website Govsalaries. com, Jenkins had a salary of $207,851 in 2024 as the deputy city manager. Bybee and Gros will now be making $195,000 each.
Before being hired to oversee Taylor’s parks in 2021, Bybee was an assistant parks director in Leander.
Officials said some of his noteworthy accomplishments for Taylor have been the revitalization of the Doris Roznovak Aquatic Center and the resurfacing of the track at Memorial Field.
He holds a master’s degree in sports management and is a certified youth sports administrator through the National Alliance for Youth Sports as well as a certified parks and recreation professional through the National Recreation and Park Association.
“I’m excited for the opportunity to put my years of experience in public service to work as part of the citymanagement team. I’ll continue working to improve the quality of life for all Taylor residents,” Bybee said.
According to a news release from the city, Gros was hired in her director position in 2021 and has since earned the department multiple awards. She has master’s degrees in humanresources management and organizational leadership.
She is vice president of the Public Sector Human Resources Association – Texas Chapter and is vice president-elect of the Texas Municipal Human Resources Association.
“I’m deeply thankful for the opportunity to continue serving the city of Taylor and look forward to contributing as part of the city management team,” Gros said.
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“Their years of public service have prepared them well for these expanded leadership roles.”
— City Manager Brian LaBorde
