Corpus Christi native Sylvia Carrillo takes Bastrop city manager job

Austin American-Statesman


Sylvia Carrillo has always had to work hard. 

From “living in the shadows, under the radar” as a child due to having an immigrant parent who was undocumented, to finishing her college degrees in between work and on weekends and going on to become one of only two Latinas in Texas in 2019 with an International City/County Management Association designation, Carrillo is now at the helm of Bastrop’s city management. 

In September, the Bastrop City Council announced Carrillo was picked to serve as the city’s manager. 

“I am pleased to welcome Sylvia Carrillo to Bastrop,” Mayor Connie Schroeder said in the September announcement. “Council has the highest expectations of her and our support for her was demonstrated by the unanimous vote.”

Carrillo, who will earn $180,000 annually, began in her new role Oct. 3. 

Her first two weeks on the job have been very busy, but she said the city has a collective group of people and organizations working toward its prosperity and growth in a managed and organized way, as exemplified in the city’s revamped land-use code that’s aimed at guiding development through responsible planning and preservation of Bastrop’s unique character. She said the city is also committed to investing in its infrastructure, and “as we get down to the details of execution, my goal is that my skill set can keep us all moving forward in a positive and fiscally responsible manner.”

“It’s an incredibly talented and multifaceted staff and external partnerships that make this town so awesome,” Carrillo told The Advertiser. “Everyone does more than their fair share and then some! The devotion to the town is palpable and something truly amazing to be a part of.”

But, she said, the city is experiencing growing pains and the demands for services from residents and corporations moving to the area when there are taxing drought conditions and limited water availability until the city’s water and wastewater treatment plants come online in the next 18 months has proven to be one of the city’s biggest challenges. 

“This places incredible demands on service needs that show up as monetary increases to the average resident,” Carrillo explained. “I want to minimize those impacts by helping the council to ensure those impacts are minimal and fiscally prudent and sustainable. In short, managing the growth with the cost so it’s not sticker shock to the residents. The shared water resource is everyone’s business!”

In her first year on the job, Carrillo said she’ll focus on ensuring the new water and wastewater plants are constructed and operational on schedule, work through any pain points from the new development code, retain and attract a talented workforce, work with the Bastrop Economic Development Corporation and commercial partners to attract the businesses and employers the city needs, and submit a balanced budget with minimal impact to the residents, among countless other initiatives.

In big picture terms, she wants to work on a joint strategic plan with all the city’s partners to ensure they’re all working in tandem and not duplicating efforts, which can be inefficient and costly to taxpayers, she said. 

‘Under the radar’

Carrillo grew up in inner city Corpus Christi and was raised by her mom and stepdad who was an illegal immigrant. Her first language was Spanish, and she said her family lived “in the shadows, under the radar” until her stepdad’s immigration status changed. Then, her family was opened to new opportunities.

“As many immigrant children do, I went to work early and focused on school,” Carrillo said. “I married young and have two daughters, who live in San Antonio. I worked on my degrees after work and on weekends until finally reaching my goals. I love what I do and would not change a thing about my career path.”

Carrillo graduated from Del Mar College and Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi with a bachelor’s degree in business administration and a master’s in public administration. In 2006, she received her Certified Public Manager designation, and in 2019 earned her ICMA designation.

She began her career in municipal government in 2003, serving as a graduate intern in the city of Corpus Christi and working her way up the ranks to assistant director for development services. In 2013, she was hired by Aransas Pass to serve as city manager. 

In 2017, she returned to Corpus Christi as an assistant city manager overseeing strategic management, information technology and the budget, before leaving her post to take the top administrative job in Sunset Valley. 

She has presented and led educational sessions at several national conferences, including the American Planning Association and ICMA. Most recently, she presented a session called “Here we grow again” discussing growth and development at the 2022 Texas City Manager’s Annual Conference held over the summer at the Hyatt Regency Lost Pines in Bastrop.

“I had an opportunity to drive around and visit while I was here and fell in love with the people and community, so I applied for the (city manager) job and by the grace of God, was awarded the opportunity to manage it a few short months later,” she said. 

When she’s not managing cities, Carrillo said she’s quite handy with tools and enjoys working with her hands. 

“Being a public servant is very rewarding and often a humbling experience; no greater love for one’s community than to show it with acts of selfless service,” she said. “I am truly a servant at heart.”