East Ridge interim manager Eddie Phillips retiring

Arkansas-Ole Miss Live Blog

Eddie Phillips, interim city manager of East Ridge and director of public safety, is retiring after 20 years with the city.

"I have been praying about this decision for quite some time, and knew that the Lord would give me peace about it when the time was right," he wrote in a statement to the East Ridge mayor and council members.

"While I intend to stay active in public safety issues, I also have the chance to work with my son. Every father understands that's an opportunity you can't easily pass up," he added.

Freida Wheeler, director of city services, will serve as interim city manager.

As public safety director, Phillips operated as both police chief and fire chief.

He has served as interim city manager on six occasions.

His latest stint as interim city manager began when the council forced out Tim Gobble, who recently was named to the state parole board by Gov. Bill Haslam.

East Ridge Council members will interview three candidates for city manager in a second effort to find a permanent replacement for Gobble. They had wanted former Red Bank City Manager Chris Dorsey for the job, but he opted to take the city manager position on Signal Mountain.

Most recently, the council received 30 applications for the job, but only three have the public administration degree required under the City Charter.

Those three are Larry Ables, who is a judicial commissioner/magistrate for Hamilton County; Andrew Hyatt, current city manager of Fairview, Tenn.; and Andrew Ellard, who is acting director of the Department of Federal and State Progress in Hattiesburg, Miss.

Interviews with the candidates will be held in coming weeks.

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