The town of Signal Mountain has a new town manager – Police Chief Boyd Veal.
At its most recent meeting May 13, the Town Council unanimously picked former Red Bank city manager Chris Dorsey as the winning candidate to replace departing Town Manager Honna Rogers, whose last day is May 24. But Dorsey said in a follow-up phone interview that he does not anticipate stepping into the position until mid-June.
“I’m trying to figure out when is a good hand-off point,” he said in regards to his current job during that interview. He is leaving his position as a budget director in Pasco County, Fla., for the Signal Mountain post. “It’s important to me to have a good finishing point,” he said of that transition.
Veal was enacted by a unanimous vote of the Council May 13 to act as interim town manager in the meantime, as he has in previous times when Rogers has been unavailable.
To stay in line with the town’s charter, Dorsey must make his home in the mountaintop community.
“I’m definitely planning on being up on the mountain,” said Dorsey, whose family is still living in Hixson while he’s in Florida. “I’m looking forward to meeting a lot of the people. I want to hear what their concerns are. It’s important to be involved in the community because we [town managers] work for the citizens.”
Town of Signal Mountain Vice Mayor Susan Robertson said in a phone interview that Dorsey will likely be asked to move within town limits within the first six months of formally taking the position.
“Our town manager is an ambassador and is a link between the Council and citizens,” she said.
After some public discussion during the May 13 meeting, Council members agreed on offering him the position with a $90,376 salary, with a review of his work expected after six months. Rogers is making $84,178.
“He was the most qualified and seemed the best fit for our community,” said Robertson. “I think he has big shoes to fill, and he will be just fine.
“It’s just a change; change is never easy,” she added.
Dorsey previously spent six years as the city manager in Red Bank until the Red Bank City Commission moved by a 3-2 vote to fire him in late 2011 (refer to the article at community.timesfreepress.com/news/2011/oct/12/red-bank-fires-financial-wizard-chris-dorsey). Before his time with Red Bank, Dorsey worked for 18 years with the Memphis city government.
“We talked about it thoroughly and he explained it,” said Robertson in reference to Dorsey being fired by the Red Bank City Commission. “Ultimately I think he may have made mistakes, but he learned from them. I think it was political, and Signal Mountain doesn’t have politics.”