As part of a simmering feud that has recently boiled into public view, Hamilton County Commissioner David Sharpe, D-Red Bank, has been questioning the amount of money Mayor Weston Wamp is spending on top positions in his administration.
It’s a topic that came to a head during a County Commission meeting Aug. 9, when Wamp announced he planned to hire former Chattanooga Police Chief David Roddy full time as his chief operating officer and elevate Lee Brouner to the role of chief finance officer. Although he praised Roddy, Sharpe said Wamp has been spending more on top brass at the expense of front-line workers.
“How do we measure success from that extra revenue?” Sharpe asked Wamp. “That’s adding a lot of public dollars to the top of the government when we have hard working folks within government that have been getting things done in years that don’t see that additional pay increase.”
A salary breakdown Sharpe requested from county finance staff provides a snapshot of how positions have been reshuffled in three county offices since Wamp took over for former Hamilton County Mayor Jim Coppinger — the mayor’s office, the chief of staff’s office, and economic and community development. Sharpe said he chose those departments because there appeared to be an unusually large increase in the workforce.
The breakdown compared Wamp’s administration in July of this year to Coppinger’s administration in August 2022, his last month as mayor.