By: Theodore Kim w/Dallas News

Plano has narrowed its search of candidates to replace longtime City Manager Tom Muehlenbeck to five candidates, including two who serve as deputies to Muehlenbeck.

Plano’s City Council will interview the candidates during a two-day stretch next month. Mayor Phil Dyer said the council also has the option of choosing none of the finalists and reopening its search.

The finalists are: Bruce Glasscock and Frank Turner, Muehlenbeck’s longtime deputy city managers; Kenneth Chandler, city manager of Portsmouth, Va.; Jon Fortune, Denton’s deputy city manager; and Jim Nichols, deputy city manager in Las Vegas. Chandler worked for a time as a project manager in Dallas.

“All five are strong candidates,” Dyer said. “I feel good with where we are.”

A consulting firm hired by the city to conduct the search, Affion Public, vetted more than 50 resumes before forwarding the City Council about 10 semi-finalists, Dyer said.

Meanwhile, Plano has named LaShon Ross, the city’s human resources chief and a deputy city manager, to serve as interim manager upon Muehlenbeck’s retirement on Monday. Ross is the first woman and first black official to serve in the position in Plano.

Muehlenbeck has served as Plano’s city manager since December 1987.