The agreement also means that neither party involved will pursue further litigation
PASO ROBLES — Following the closed session at the Tuesday, Feb. 4, City Council meeting, City Attorney Elizabeth Hull provided an update stating that council chose Assistant City Manager Chris Huot to serve as the interim city manager. At the next City Council meeting, he will be presented with an employment contract for that position.
The appointment comes after the city reached a settlement with now former City Manager Ty Lewis. On Tuesday, Feb. 4, the city released the settlement agreement between Lewis and the city, which outlined that more than $350,000 would be paid to Lewis.
Lewis filed a $2.75 million complaint against the city, alleging a hostile work environment, naming City Councilmember Chris Bausch as the primary city employee involved. Before filing, Lewis took a leave due to health reasons caused by stress. The city rejected his claim on Oct. 8, 2024. Returning as city manager in November, Lewis alleged Bausch violated municipal codes, defamed him, and inflicted emotional distress. The complaint included harassment claims based on perceived sexual orientation and religion, a hostile work environment, and bullying. It also accused other residents of conspiring to ruin his reputation.
Hull explained on Tuesday that after the city rejected Lewis’s claim, he had six months to sue the city and Bausch, so they went into negotiations. Hull also reported on the special City Council meeting closed session held on Monday, Jan. 27. This was the meeting in which the city approved the settlement agreement with Lewis and that his last day with the city was Jan. 26.
“The City Council voted 4-1 to settle that claim on the terms presented by the California Joint Powers Insurance Authority. Mr. Bausch was the dissenting vote,” said Hull of the Jan. 27 meeting.
The terms of the settlement agreement include Lewis receiving six months of wages ($128,000), the cash equivalent of six months of COBRA totaling $10,000, $6,900 for administrative time, $200,000 for additional damages, and $20,000 for legal free reimbursement.
The agreement also means that neither party involved will pursue further litigation. The settlement agreement can be read at prcity.com/DocumentCenter/View/39125/Ty-Lewis_City-of-Paso-Robles-Settlement—2025-01-27
Though the city has stated they will not be making any further comments on the matter, in a statement released by the city on Tuesday, Feb. 4, it said, “The City thanks Mr. Lewis for his dedicated service to the Paso Robles community as a police officer, police chief, and city manager.”
When Paso Robles Press covered the announcement of Lewis stepping down and reaching a settlement with the City in our Jan. 29 article, we reached out to Lewis for comment, who did not provide and still has not provided a response. That article can be read at pasoroblespress.com/news/government/city-of-paso-robles/paso-robles-city-manager-steps-down-following-settlement-2/
We also reached out to Mayor John Hamon, who was unavailable to provide comment at the time of that Jan. 29 article but followed up by saying he could only provide the city’s standard statement on the matter: “The City of Paso Robles reached a settlement agreement with City Manager Lewis which resolved all outstanding issued related to a claim Mr. Lewis had filed against the City. This resolves all matters between the Parties, and the City has no further comment on this matter.”
Bausch was also able to provide the same statement.
The next Paso Robles City Council meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 18, at 6 p.m.
