City Management

The City Manager is appointed by the City Council and is Chief Executive Officer of the City. The City Manager’s Department consists of the City Manager, Deputy City Manager, Assistant City Manager, and an Administrative Assistant. Responsibility of this department includes staff organizational management, personnel appointment and removal, preparation and execution of the City budget, as well as administration of City Ordinances and policy as adopted by the City Council.

City Manager, Steve Williams S-Williams-(1)

Steve Williams, ICMA-CM, MPA, CGFO is the City Manager for the City of Schertz. Previously he was the Assistant City Administrator/Chief Financial Officer for the City of Conroe and prior to that Steve worked for the Town of Flower Mound as the Director of Budget & Research and in the City of Dallas as a Sr. Budget Analyst. He attended the University of North Texas, earning Master of Public Administration and Bachelor of Arts (Political Science) degrees.

Steve is a member of and has served in key leadership positions in various professional organizations, as well as within the greater Conroe area community. Such involvement includes the Government Finance Officers Association of the US and Canada (Executive Board Member), GFOA Texas (President), International City/County Management Association (Credentialed Manager), Texas City Management Association, Montgomery ISD (Board Member), Conroe Noon Lions Club (President), Leadership Montgomery County (Chairman), Conroe YMCA (Board Member), and Education for Tomorrow Alliance (Board Member). He is also a Certified Black Belt Head Instructor within the American Society of Karate, teaching a class through the Conroe Recreation Center to over 1,000 children and adults over the past 17 years, and has coached youth basketball, football, and baseball.

On a personal note, Steve is happily married to his wife of 29 years, Carrie, and a father of four children: Kathryn; Peter; Caleb; and Jordan. Carrie is a teacher and Kathryn lives in Arlington, VA, and Peter, Caleb, and Jordan attend college. Steve and his family enjoy participating in a variety of sports and leisure activities, especially outdoor and fitness-related activities.

  1. Steve Williams

    City Manager

Brian JamesDeputy City Manager, Brian James

Brian James oversees a number of different departments including Economic Development, Engineering, Planning & Development, Internal Services, and Public Works.

James started his career in 1998 as a Planner in McKinney, Texas where he moved his way up to serve as Director of Planning and then Assistant Director of Development Services. He then worked for the City of San Antonio focusing on redevelopment projects. He began working at the City of Schertz in 2012 and currently serves as Deputy City Manager.  

James is a member of the American Institute of Certified Planners and holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of Texas at San Antonio and a Master of Public Administration from the University of Texas at San Antonio. He and his wife Erika have two grown children, Jack and Thomas. 

  1. Brian James

    Deputy City Manager

Assistant to the City Manager Sarah GonzalezAssistant City Manager, Sarah Gonzalez

Sarah Gonzalez was hired by the City of Schertz in 2008. She began her employment in the Public Works department and has progressively advanced her career throughout the years she has been with the City. Most recently she was promoted to Assistant City Manager, but has served in multiple roles in the organization in her nearly 15 year tenure.  The departments and functions that fall under Gonzalez' purview are: Finance, Library, Parks & Recreation, Public Affairs and Human Resources. 

Gonzalez is a member of the Texas Association of Municipal Information Officers, Texas Municipal League, Texas City Manager’s Association, and The Chamber (Schertz-Cibolo-Selma Area). She received the 2018 Leadership Fellow Award from the TML Leadership Academy and is a graduate of 2022 Class of The Chamber Leadership CORE Program. Gonzalez has also worked to develop the Schertz Emerging Leaders Program, which is the City’s first employee leadership development initiative.

Prior to municipal government, Gonzalez has experience working in the media business in Dallas and in the financial planning field in Austin, before settling into her career with Schertz. A Summa Cum Laude graduate of Texas A&M University, Gonzalez received her Bachelor of Arts in Communications with a minor in Business Administration in 2005. An avid runner, Gonzalez has completed multiple half-marathons and the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington D.C. Gonzalez is married to her husband Ismael Jr., and they have two daughters. They enjoy spending time with family and following Aggie football, the San Antonio Spurs, and the Dallas Cowboys.

  1. Sarah Gonzalez

    Assistant City Manager

Previous City Managers

  • Denny L. Arnold
    October 20, 1972 until December 1, 1977
  • Walter W. Hill
    December 13, 1978 until August 8, 1979
  • Jimmy G. Gilmore
    September 6, 1979 until June 6, 1988
  • Kerry R. Sweatt
    September 6, 1988 until August 1, 2000
  • Dewey P. Cashwell, Jr.
    February 20, 2001 until June 26, 2002
  • Mark Marquez
    October 1, 2002 until October 5, 2004
  • Don E. Taylor
    May 17, 2005 until May 31, 2011
  • John Kessel
    June 1, 2011 to January 26, 2018
  • Dr. Mark Browne
    January 2, 2019 to November 23, 2022