Wayon Hines was chosen as Collegedale’s new city manager at the commission meeting Monday night. Four applicants had been interviewed last week and based on the interviews and numerical ratings, the field had been narrowed to two - Mr. Hines, who has been serving as interim city manager for the past 11 weeks, and Melissa Marsh, city manager of Madison Heights, Mich., since 2018.
Commissioner Debbie Baker said Mr.
Hines has lived in the area 14 years and during that time has been engaged with the community. He has been Collegedale’s engineer before being appointed interim city manager. Commissioner Baker said she believed that the commission should consider local.
Although he has had no experience in a city manager role prior to his interim position, Mr. Hines is compassionate but not afraid to say no, Commissioner Baker said. He is capable of hiring and firing, she said. After talking to department heads to get a feel for how they worked with Mr. Hines, Commissioner Baker said employees were leery at first, but had found him fair and bright and capable of solving issues. She said at first she had been totally against hiring someone already working in the city’s government but said she had changed her mind and would like to promote from within.
That assessment was echoed by Commissioner Ethan White, who said a lot of the employees were originally hesitant, but have turned 180 degrees, and that none are on the fence now, concerning the interim city manager.
"I have no problem with people starting at the bottom," said Vice Mayor Tim Johnson.
On the other hand, Mayor Katie Lamb, said the city would be starting out with a city manager with no prior experience, the same as with Ted Rogers when he was hired 15 years ago.
"It’s ludicrous to get behind someone with no experience versus somebody with a lot of it," said Commissioner Phil Garver.
The vote was Vice Mayor Tim Johnson, and Commissioners Baker and White in favor of hiring Mr. Hines full time and Mayor Lamb and Commissioner Phil Garver voting against. City Attorney Sam Elliot was asked to negotiate a salary for the new city manager. He said he would bring back Mr. Hines’ expectations at the first June meeting which will then be discussed and voted on.
The commission also discussed and took action on clarifying the benefits for retired City Manager Rogers. The commissioners said that their original vote on May 1 on Mr. Roger’s retirement package was based on what Mayor Lamb had said. On Monday, she said her recommendation was from an internet search where she found what she suggested was “typical” for someone who had been in service with the city for 15 years, who had high ratings with the city experiencing sustained growth. She said the information had not come from MTAS, the city’s advisor. Vice Mayor Johnson and Commissioner Baker said they misunderstood and made their decisions based on what the mayor had said, believing it came from the advisory service. When he later called MTAS for guidance, the vice mayor said he was told that the agreement the city had put together for Mr. Rogers was “unheard of.”
Discussion took place about reversing some elements of the agreement, including removing a vehicle allowance and cell phone service, from the retirement package. The city will also not pay for professional dues or for a retention incentive worth $6,000-$7,000. The city would receive no benefit from these expenses since Mr. Rogers no longer works for Collegedale. The base pay for six months more and health insurance will remain until the end of December.
Commissioner Garver said that these actions sounded like harassment because the commissioners did not vote this way on the retirement package when they had the opportunity to. “We’re not harassing him,” said Commissioner White, “ He sent a demand letter to us,” and that is what we are responding to.
In other business, hours for passive activities will be allowed in all parks in the city with the exception of the playgrounds, 24 hours a day, to match the times currently allowed on the greenway.
The commissioners awarded a bid for installing a sewer force main in the amount of $2,500,061. Funds for this expense are in the upcoming budget, with money coming from the sewer fees.
An ordinance passed to rezone property on Little Debbie Parkway from C-2 Commercial Shopping Center zone to R-1-L, Low Density Single Family Residential zone. Planning Director Kelly Martin told the commissioners that the planning commission had recommended to approve the zoning change for the 1.14 acres that is being carved out of the larger Whittenberg property for a family member to build there.