County commission set to vote on new hires
The Polk County Commission will soon get a chance to vote on filling a position that has been left open since 2016.
County Manager Matt Denton said the Board of Commissioners will get a chance to decide between two candidates for the unfilled job of Assistant County Manager during their June 6 meeting.
"I've got an individual that I'm going to be recommending to the board this week," Denton said.
He said the interview process that has been ongoing for the past months has been narrowed down to two candidates. He said he was not willing to release the names of candidates due to their current employment status. The job has been left open since early 2016, when former Assistant County Manager David McElwee resigned to run for the office of Tax Commissioner. He lost that race to Kathy Cole, and later opened Brother Joe's Coffee on East Avenue in front of Croker's Hardware.
It was also the position that caused contention between board members after Commissioner Jason Ward sought the job. When it came time to approve the 2017 Fiscal Year budget for the county, a trio of commissioner blocked passage so long as the job was funded.
Commissioners Scotty Tillery and Jennifer Hulsey, along with former Commissioner Ray Barber, voted against the budget so long as it included $75,000 to pay for the position. Instead, they sought to use the money for raises for employees, along with another assistant position in administration once filled by Tessie Peyton not filled after her retirement.
Back in January, the budget was finally approved and the process allowed to go forward with a 3- 2 vote approving the budget after Barber lost his seat to Commissioner Chuck Thaxton late last year.
Commissioners will get to vote on a potential new hire during their June 6 meeting being held
at 7 p.m. at the Board of Commissioners meeting room at the Polk County Police Department office at 73 Clines Ingram Jackson Drive, Cedartown.
Along with a new hire potentially being approved during the Tuesday meeting, Commissioners were also expected to vote on a new 911 Director as well.
Check back for further updates on new hires in the coming edition of the Standard Journal.