The city of Sacramento will begin its search for a new city manager next year, city officials said Wednesday.The city council voted Tuesday, in a 6 to 3 vote, to reject Chan’s request for a contract extension. His current contract is set to expire at the end of the month. Chan began his tenure as city manager in 2017. He served as interim city manager before that from November 2016 to February 2017, a city spokesperson said. In recent months, Chan’s nearly $400,000 salary has been under fire. He is currently one of the highest-paid city managers in the state.District 6 council member Eric Guerra voted against the one-year extension. At an unrelated event Wednesday, he explained he had concerns about the conditions of the contract and the high price tag of keeping Chan on.“When I reviewed that contract, it wasn't a one-year extension,” Guerra said. “The clauses in the contract created a two-year provision at almost $1,000,000, and I made the motion to reject the contract based on the factors of that contract.”Discussion about the city manager's salary comes as city leaders prepare to address a budget deficit in the tens of millions of dollars. District 1 council member Lisa Kaplan said she supported keeping Chan on due to his decades of experience in city hall as the mayor and a third of the council are new.“If say well you have to go in for brain surgery. Do you want the new surgeon or the 20-year surgeon?” she said. “Right now, as we look at our budget deficit, it's going to take some intricate work as to how we can put our city, the best foot forward, but also protect a majority of our employees.”While campaigning for mayor, new mayor Kevin McCarty had said he'd support the one-year extension for Chan. When it came time for the vote, however, he changed his position and voted against the extension with the majority of the council. McCarty released a statement to KCRA 3 News Wednesday afternoon:"I was clear during the campaign that I would deal with the City Manager’s contract after I was sworn in and that my hope at the time was for continuity in the first year. However, after the three-hour closed session with the full council it was clear that it was time for a change. I voted with the majority to reject his contract and move forward. The search for a new city manager will begin in the new year.”Both Guerra and Kaplan agreed the community needs to be involved in choosing new leadership for the city.“What kind of city management do we want in our city?” Guerra asked. “Just like when we've done in the budget to better identify our priorities, we need to do that with identifying the right leadership.” Kaplan said she is open to searching for candidates outside of the state, but that the right person needs to understand the working relationship between the city manager and the mayor and the unique challenges the state faces. She noted that a search for a new city manager would take months, which contributed to her decision to keep Chan on another year. “I want somebody to come in that really understands what their job is and how to try and implement our vision,” Kaplan said.On Wednesday afternoon, the city released a news update regarding Chan’s status with the city. It states Chan’s last day will be Dec. 31.See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter