City employees outnumbered citizens 12 to 0 at Thursday’s scheduled session to gather public input on the qualities the new city manager should possess.

A dozen employees from various departments were on hand at the King’s Fork Recreation Center to facilitate 12 discussion groups of up to 10 people each. About 120 chairs were arranged in circles in the gymnasium, and snacks and bottled water were provided.

But it was all for naught. Not a single citizen showed up to share his or her thoughts. Around 6:20 p.m., Human Resources Director Nancy Olivo sent most of the facilitators home, and most of the chairs were folded and put away. She and a couple of other staff stayed until 8 p.m. in case anybody showed up, but nobody did.

“I was disappointed no one showed up, especially since the staff prepared for over a hundred,” City Councilman Mike Duman said. He and Vice Mayor Leroy Bennett were in attendance.

“I was hoping we would have had some people that wanted to give some input on what they would like to see,” Bennett said.

Duman and Bennett both remained hopeful, however, that the second and third community forums will attract more attendance.

Each is scheduled from 6 to 8 p.m. at the following dates and locations:

4July 28, East Suffolk Recreation Center, 138 S. Sixth St.

4July 30, Virginia Modeling, Analysis and Simulation Center, 1030 University Blvd.

“I hope people will take advantage of the next two, because we are interested in their input,” Duman said. “If they can’t, I hope they’ll at least go online and complete the survey.”

The online survey is located at www.suffolkva.us/citymanagersurvey. Anyone who needs help filling out the online survey can get assistance at one of Suffolk’s three library branches. The survey is open through July 31.

Survey-takers are being asked to order six goals for Suffolk according to how they believe the new city manager should prioritize them; identify the city’s highest priorities and greatest challenges that the new city manager must address; name areas of professional experience the new city manager should possess; and name the top three management and leadership characteristics the new city manager should demonstrate. There’s also a space for open-ended comments.