Snellville to Treadway: "You're hired!"

Snellville officially has a new City Manager.

Treadway hired as Snellville city manager
Atlanta Journal Constitution - GA, USA
By BETH WARREN It's official: Snellville has a new city manager,
bringing to an end an issue that for months divided the City Council
and involved the state ...

Treadway hired as Snellville city manager
Atlanta Journal Constitution - GA, USA
By BETH WARREN Snellville's often-divided mayor and
council came together Wednesday in a unanimous vote
confirming an East Tennessee man as the new city ...

Snellville selects a new city manager
Atlanta Journal Constitution - GA, USA
By BETH WARREN After a monthslong national search,
Snellville officials have selected a new city manager —
Russell G. Treadway of Elizabethton, Tenn., ...

From Mayor Oberholtzer's Blog:

Its Official! We Have a City Manager!
By Jerry
Treadway hired as Snellville city manager
By BETH WARREN The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 06/11/08 Snellville’s often-divided mayor
and council came together Wednesday in a unanimous
vote confirming an East Tennessee man ...
Mayor Jerry Oberholtzer - http://www.jerryoberholtzer.com/

Snellville City Manager issue continues

This excerpt from the Atlanta Journal and Constitution continues the saga from Wednesday's post =

"The mayor said then he could do the job just as well until a permanent city manager was hired.

However, State Attorney General Thurbert Baker reviewed the issue and issued a written opinion earlier this month making it clear that a mayor cannot also serve as city manager under Georgia law. Mayors aren't supposed to give direction or orders to city employees publicly or privately because that's the duty of city managers, Baker wrote in his opinion.

The mayor said Wednesday that Baker's opinion is not binding, a comment that angered Auld.

"His comments suggest he believes he is above the law," Auld said."

Full AJC Story

I asked around to friends and family for opinions and one said,

"The people of Snellville didn't elect him [Oberholtzer] to serve as City Manager, they voted him in to be Mayor.

Isn't it amazing that simplifying something does give you the answer you need?

Brett Explains It All & I Have To Vent

Former Mayor of Snellville Brett Harrell (pictured) clarifies some details about Mayor Jerry Oberholtzer serving as Interim City Manager in his blog.

It has me thinkin,' hey, if Jerry's not getting additional income to serve as Interim City Manager, he's saving the City of Snellville some money, isn't he? City Manager salary is something like $100K if I remember right.

I think what needs to happen at City Hall is what needs to happen in most businesses and families...better communication. I think many people, including those on the City Council, see Mayor Oberholtzer as having a "full speed ahead" attitude, and they feel like they are being run over by him.

But this is what happens when someone is accustomed to getting things done. It certainly is frustrating to be a person who wants to get things accomplished and has a vision...but sometimes a person like that has to work to slow down and make sure everyone understands what is going to be done and why a decision was made. This is basic People-ology.

Still, I am disturbed by the over $30K given to a Municipal Manager's Association (it was tucked in with something else that was passed) and our City Council members didn't know it was approved(?!?) Some Council members just thought it was discussed and not approved. Can we get Starbucks to donate some coffee or something for these people? Lord, you know I love you all on the City Council, but you need to wake up!

"When you wake up, get up ...
and, when you GET up - WAKE up!"
~ Heartsill Wilson

Speak out on Oberholtzer's self appointment as City Manager

What do you think about Mayor Oberholtzer appointing himself City Manager? Opinions are all over the place on this. Depends on who you ask...

Some people say he was totally right to do it because it was an emergency situation - the Mayor himself says that previous Snellville mayors Clower and Harrell did it - yet others say it's Oberholtzer's fault that it became an "emergency" situation in the first place - and I've even seen other comments that this was Mayor Jerry Oberholtzer's "plan" all along.

Some folks are likening it to dictatorship. Mayor Oberholtzer says that the City of Snellville has great department heads and that the city practically runs itself.

Attorney and City Council member Warren Auld is looking into the legality of it all, looking for a precedence and he said he hadn't found any as of the date of the AJC news article.

Check out this AJC article, but remember to come back here and tell me what you think!

As my mom would say, at least this gives us something to talk about.

Snellville City Manager Job Posted

The job is being advertised. Have a Master's Degree, live in Snellville? Go for it.

LINK

The City of Snellville, Georgia, is seeking a highly qualified individual to become its next City Manager. The selected individual will be appointed by the Mayor and Council, and will manage the daily operations of the City government. The ideal candidate will have comprehensive knowledge of modern local government management principles and practices. Residence within the City of Snellville is desired. Any additional management experience in the private sector will also be a plus. Snellville is seeking not only a team player but a team builder. A creative and proactive approach is required to take Snellville into the future. Snellville’s City Manager must be willing to get involved in the community and be citizen-oriented. The position requires an individual, with a strong work ethic, who can be responsive and accessible to the City Council. Snellville is located in the southern portion of Gwinnett County and is part of the metropolitan Atlanta area. Population is currently 18,000. The current General Fund annual operating budget for the City is $11.1 million with an overall city budget of $18 million. The City has 100.75 FTE employees. Starting salary will be market competitive, DOQ/E. The salary for the City Manager of Snellville will be up to $110,000 per annum plus benefits. Brochure at www.mercergroupinc.com Confidential resumes should be sent by close of business March 21, 2008, to James Mercer, The Mercer Group, Inc., 5579B Chamblee Dunwoody Road, #511, Atlanta, GA 30332. Voice: 770-551-0403; Fax: 770-399-9749. E-Mail: mercer@mindspring.com; Website: www.mercergroupinc.com. EOE. Minority and Female Candidates are Encouraged to Apply.

Snellville City Council and Mayor at Odds Again

Mayor Oberholtzer asked Interim City Manager, Jim Brooks to hold off on doing employee reviews until Brooks' contract expires February 13th, his reason being employee morale. Mayor Jerry Oberholtzer would like Mr. Brooks' successor to conduct the reviews and pay raises.

People without any management experience would wonder, "why wait on the reviews?" The reason is that when a predecessor has done reviews and pay raises, employees will generally be more loyal to the reviewer. By allowing the new City Manager of Snellville (when hired) to conduct the reviews, it will help the employees bond with the new supervisor. It just generally makes sense from a people perspective...but it probably generally angers the employees when they hear that their reviews (ie pay raises) have been stalled. This is only good for employee morale if the employees involved do not know about it. If they know about it, it will backfire and hurt morale. Oops. Who talked?

According to this news story, Mayor Oberholtzer felt attacked by members of the City Council, so he walked out on the meeting. I don't really blame him. The frustration must be really...well, frustrating! Better to walk out than to cuss out people. LOL!

But Hubs has a different perspective - he says that what should and needs to happen should just happen on schedule (the reviews and pay raises) and that the problem with management types (like me?! LOL) is that we try to arrange things to fit our business agendas, and we should just keep things simple. Hmmm. Good point there.