Whiteville council split on assistant

By JEFFERSON WEAVER
Staff Writer

A request by the city manager to realign Whiteville’s chain of command was denied Tuesday, amidst several jabs at the manager.

In a 4-2 vote, the Whiteville City Council voted down Josh Ray’s suggestion that a new position – that of assistant city manager/public utilities director – be created by combining several positions into one post.

Councilmen Harold Troy, Howard Jones, Jimmy Clarida and Tim Blackmon voted against the position. Councilmen Robert Leder and Terry Mann voted in favor of the position.

A substitute motion by Leder to table the motion until after the council’s planning retreat was also defeated 4-2. Mann and Leder were the only ones who voted in favor of the substitute motion.

Discussion about the position – which would essentially replace the old city engineer’s post and change some supervisory duties – was at times sharp.

Ray told the board the position would allow a streamlined process for builders, developers and people in need of city services such as public works and planning. Administrative agencies, along with the fire and police departments, would still be under the direct control of the manager, but public works, planning, the city garage, inspections, and the water and sewer department would be aligned under the public utilities director/assistant manager.

That person would report directly to the city manager, and under some circumstances substitute for the manager.

Ray told the council that the change was needed to improve “efficiency” in city services. Ray did not specifically mention what departments needed improvement.

Council members Troy, Jones and Blackmon pressed Ray to specify where the inefficiencies exist.

“What areas are we talking about?” Troy asked.

“We have several departments with some very inefficient processes that need to be improved,” Ray said at one point.

“What you’re not saying is that the problems might be with the manager,” Blackmon added.

Several council members also objected to giving the position the title of assistant city manager.

“When I was city manager here,” Jones said, “if I wasn’t around, I just let the departments run themselves. I didn’t need an assistant.”

“Mr. Jones, I’m not saying that didn’t work under your administration,” Leder said, “but that was a long time ago. Things have changed.”

Mann supported Ray’s proposal.

“What the manager has told us is that there are some inefficient processes here,” Mann said, “and no matter what the title is, this position could fix it. I don’t see the problem.”

The council decided 11 months ago not to immediately fill the city engineer’s post, as a cost-saving measure.

“We tried,” Ray said, “but it didn’t work. By combining these departments under the direction of one person, we have a single point of contact for many of these services. Right now, it’s all over the map.”

The position would be created from exiting positions and would only require an additional $5,000 to $10,000 in funding, Ray said.

“We are not talking about a $50,000 new position here,” he said. “We’re talking about streamlining the process and saving $53,000.”

Although Troy voted against the assistant city manager position, he told the board and Ray “it looks like we could use a public utilities director.”

Troy noted that a city engineer’s position might have avoided some of the problems and expenses with the wastewater treatment plant, among other projects.

“It might have been better to have an engineer in house, in light of Mr. Green’s request,” Troy said.

Troy was referring specifically to a request by Leo Green of Green engineering to amend his company’s contract due to cost overruns associated with the wastewater treatment plant project. (See related story).