The Summerville City Council will conclude its months-long search for a city manager this evening (Monday, October 22nd) when it names its top pick for the position.

In city hall at 5 PM, the meeting will begin with an executive session (not open to the public) where the council will have a final opportunity to air any last-minute concerns before making the final decision official.

Immediately following the executive session, the new city manager’s name will be read as the council formally holds a vote on authorizing city attorney Albert Palmour to enter into contract negotiations with her/him on the city’s behalf.

The foregoing makes up the entirety of the council’s Monday agenda. WZQZ will have a reporter present to publicly announce the new city manager’s name on our Facebook page as soon as it is released.

The positions’s three finalists are:

  • Mr. James A. Woods is from Hogansville, GA, and is a former city manager of the same. He was also the city manager of Blountstown, FL. Woods was interviewed last Monday morning.
  • Mr. Jason L. Hall is from and the current city manager of Lyons, GA. Hall, who was interviewed Monday immediately after Woods, also served Varnell, GA in the same position.
  • Ms. Janice Galloway, from the Cloudland community west of Menlo. Galloway is currently Summerville’s interim City Manager and interim Water Treatment Plant Superintendent.

The city has been working to fill the position’s vacancy since the July passing of Tony Carroll, who held the position from 2016 until his death. When Mr. Carroll went on medical leave in the spring to fight a second battle with cancer, former Summerville Water Treatment Plant superintendent Janice Galloway came on to fill in. Carroll lost his battle, and Mrs. Galloway agreed to serve as interim for ~$1,500/week until a long-term manager is hired.

Supt. Galloway is also temporarily reprising her role as head of the Water Treatment Plant. In her capacity as interim city manager, Galloway dismissed Byron Riebow as the plant’s superintendent (a position he held for less than three months), citing his “poor fit” for the city. After getting a green light from the state’s Environmental Protection Division, Supt. Galloway began also serving as interim water treatment Plant superintendent (a subordinate position). She is an applicant for the city manager position, but not for the water treatment plant superintendent position.

At a city council meeting last month, Summerville Mayor Harry Harvey said that the council had received twenty-seven applications for the city manager position, which it narrowed down to the top five on September 19th. The position’s advertised salary range is $82,000-100,000, but the Mayor said that the city can afford slightly more if they feel that the person is worth the investment.