Coos Bay’s former city manager has found a job as manager of an irrigation district in eastern Washington.

The Kennewick Irrigation District offered a $105,000 contract to Chuck Freeman on Tuesday morning to head the organization. He is slated to start his new job Nov. 2, if he accepts the post.

The district started searching for a manager after firing the previous officeholder in March, according to an article in the Tri-City Herald newspaper.

Three finalists had interviews with the district board and selected members of the water agency’s staff in recent weeks, said John Jaksch, president of the district board.

"We have a lot of infrastructure needs and he has a good track record with that," he said. "We need someone who is forward thinking."

The Coos Bay City Council fired Freeman Sept. 23 without a stated cause. Two days before his firing, Freeman told Mayor Jeff McKeown he shouldn’t be “f---ing with me,” and said he’d cause more heartburn than a former city employee who filed a lawsuit alleging wrongful termination.

Jaksch said he had read about Freeman's firing.

“It sounds like an unfortunate situation that happens in a professional career,” he said.

Freeman was absent from the meeting where he was fired, saying he had family matters to attend to in Washington.

Freeman could not be reached for comment on the latest development.

He received a $123,000 severance package from Coos Bay, but if he accepts the job in Kennewick, he’ll have to pay some of it back, said Coos Bay’s acting city manager Rodger Craddock. Freeman would keep a little more than $81,000, which is the equivalent of eight months’ salary. But he also received eight months worth of benefits. Freeman would have to pay a portion back if he takes the job in Washington.