City goes
without
a manager

By NICOLE CARTRETTE

The City of Whiteville is running without a city manager.

No interim manager has yet been appointed, but the council may make a decision as early as next Tuesday.

Mayor Dial Gray said the city is “in the process of collecting names” and may look into appointing a “temporary interim” until an interim can be found.

Former City Manager Susan Rhodes told council on June 13 that she would resign on June 30.

“Council will have to agree,” said Gray, indicating he did not know how other council members would vote or feel about temporarily appointing someone possibly from within city hall.

Gray said City Attorney Carlton Williamson said a temporary interim could be appointed. That could be “anybody the council wanted to put in” the position,” Gray said.

Only one potential interim manager’s name was received from the N.C. League of Municipalities (NCLM) Gray said. He believes council will want more options. He said publishing the name would hinder the search.

Council Member Robert Leder said he did not have a problem with appointing a temporary interim if the board chooses.

“We need to see if we have interest,” said Leder, who is hopeful the city will have applications soon from potential interim candidates.

Council Member Howard Jones said no one has contacted him regarding the possibility of appointing a temporary interim.

“We should have appointed someone last week –that is good business management,” Jones said.

He indicated his vote for a temporary interim would “depend on who it is.”

Council Member Terry Mann said he thinks the council should appoint a temporary interim if additional names do not come up this week or next.

“I think there are some folks who could do it,” Mann said, adding that it is a big responsibility.

Hartwell Wright of the NCLM said the organization maintains a list of mostly retired managers who have expressed an interest in doing interim work.

Wright met with council weeks ago to discuss the process for hiring a new city manager. He warned council the search for a manager is competitive and could take six months or more.

He indicated a competitive salary range for cities with populations between 5,000 and 10,000 is $75,000 to $85,000 per year, not including benefit packages. The current city manager’s salary is set at $65,515 a year.

To keep the search broad, he suggested the council draft an advertisement with more “preferences” than “requirements.” \

The city has not yet drafted an advertisement for the vacant position. “Everybody is suppose to be putting thoughts together” about what they want in a city manager, Gray said. It may be discussed at the July 11 council meeting, he said.