Rocky Top has ‘six-month window’ to find city manager
Rocky Top has a “six-month window” to find a permanent city manager since Mayor Kerry Templin was authorized earlier this month to hire an interim manager for that period, Templin said during last week’s regular council meeting.
When asked by Councilman Zack Green whether there had been “any progress on finding a permanent city manager,” Templin said, “The goal is to have someone within the next six months.”
Green has suggested that the city begin working on an advertisement to seek applications for the job in the wake of the resignation of Michael Foster, who announced during the February council meeting that he would be leaving the position effective March 31.
Foster, who has served in the position since 2016 when the city charter was changed to a city manager form of municipal government, had been working under increasing negativity from the new mayor and council majority since they took office in December.
Templin and the council approved a “severance agreement” with Foster during the February meeting that will ensure that Foster gets paid “a lump sum equal to four months aggregate salary, accrued leave, and benefits,” including the $500-a-month car allowance that his employment contract dictates.
The city also agreed to maintain existing health insurance coverage for Foster through July 31.
To replace Foster, at least temporarily until a permanent replacement can be recruited, Templin has hired Michael Ellis, an Anderson County High School teacher, former girls’ basketball coach, and former Anderson County road superintendent, as the interim city manager for up to six months.
During a recent special meeting, the council voted 4-1 to approve a resolution that authorized Mayor Kerry Templin to hire the interim city manager, whom Templin had already recommended during the council’s Feb. 16 regular meeting.
City Manager Michael Foster turned in his resignation to the council during the February meeting, effective March 31.
Foster, who has served in the position since 2016 when the city charter was changed to a city manager form of municipal government, had been working under increasing negativity from the new mayor and council majority since they took office in December.
Templin and the council approved a “severance agreement” with Foster during the meeting that will ensure that Foster gets paid “a lump sum equal to four months aggregate salary, accrued leave, and benefits,” including the $500-a-month car allowance that his employment contract dictates.
The city also agreed to maintain existing health insurance coverage for Foster through July 31.
To replace Foster, at least temporarily until a permanent replacement can be recruited, Templin recommended that the council consider hiring Ellis. The resolution passed at a special called meeting March 2 paved the way for Templin to pick Ellis for the job.
Under contract terms approved by the resolution, Ellis would be paid on the basis of $55,000 per year plus a “standard benefits package.”
The duration of employment would be six months initially, or “until a permanent city manage is hired.” But extension of the position beyond the initial six months would require approval of the council.
Councilman Richard Dawson cast the only vote in opposition to the resolution for the interim city manager.
Foster, who also is an elected Anderson County commissioner serving District 2, was targeted by Templin and two council candidates allied with him in last year’s city election.
Templin defeated longtime Mayor Timothy Sharp in the November election, and his two allied council candidates, Mack Bunch and Jeff Gilliam, also won the only two council seats that were on the ballot.
They had campaigned on a pledge to replace Foster, saying primarily that they believed he was not as in touch with the citizens as they felt he should be.
On Jan. 31, Templin chaired a special council “workshop” meeting to discuss his proposal to change the city charter to eliminate the city manager form of government and return to the strong mayor-council setup the city had prior to 2016’s charter revision.
In other business March 16:
*Foster told the council that the new garbage truck is now in operation, but not all customers have yet received the special cans that must be used with the automated pickup and dumping mechanism on the truck.
“The old green cans will still work,” Foster said.
Foster also noted that customers needing a second can should be able to get one at the city’s cost of $50 each.
*The council approved a resolution proclaiming April 25 as “International Parental Alienation Awareness Day” in the city.
The proclamation recognizes that “parental alienation deprives children of the right to be loved by their whole family, resulting in a psychological impact on children, and as such, it is considered a form of child abuse.”
Parental alienation is defined in the resolution as “behaviors such as speaking negatively about a parent to, or in front of, a child,” which can “destroy the bond between a loving parent and child …”
*The council appointed police officer Jackie Phillips to serve on the city’s Recreation Committee through 2025.
*The council approved a resolution proclaiming Rocky Top as a “Tree City USA” and marking March 24 as Arbor Day 2023.