JOHN COFFELTEditor

The Board of Mayor and Alderman moved closer at the Dec. 5 meeting to hiring a person who will fulfill duties akin to a city manager by approving a new job description for a chief of staff.

The board’s actions were distinctive in that no motion was made to approve any other job descriptions, including city manager project manager, which had been discussed at the November work session that discussed the options.

Vice Mayor Mark Messick had supported the concept for the position after City Attorney Craig Johnson suggested such a position at last month’s work session that could be the compromise for a city leader that does not have authority over department heads.

The position will work under the supervision of the mayor, coordinate plans and projects within the city, research and write grant applications, recruit business to the city and represent the city at board and committee meetings.

The position calls for applicants to have a bachelor’s degree in public administration or related field, five years’ experience in the field or a combination of experience and training to provide the required knowledge.

Members of the board have expressed the need for a central leadership position, but citing past problems with a city manager they were concerned of having an authority over the city’s department heads.

“That’s what we have department heads for. We don’t need someone looking over their shoulders…” Bellamy said. “(A chief operating officer) has no business supervising the Chief of Police … no business even running the dog catcher. They have a boss siting right out here. We’ve giving them a job, they are perfectly capable of doing their job, and what we need to do as a board is back these people and quit trying to micromanage them.”

“A good leader is going to surround himself with people who know what they’re doing and leave them alone,” he said.

The motion passed 5-1 with Alderman Donny Parsley offering the no vote.

John has been with the Manchester Times since May 2011. John has won Tennessee Press Association awards for Best News Photo and placed in numerous other categories. John is a 1994 graduate of Tullahoma High School, a graduate of Motlow State Community College and earned a Bachelor of Arts in English from Middle Tennessee State University. He lives in Tullahoma, enjoys painting, dancing and exploring the outdoors.