Fort Smith department reorganized with two directors

FORT SMITH — The city’s department of development services is in the process of being split in half.

The department previously included four offices, according to a news release on Friday. This included planning and zoning, building safety, community development and neighborhood services.

However, with the reorganization, the department of development services will keep planning and zoning and community development while a new department, the department of building services, will assume building safety and neighborhood services.

“This one department, the old development services, did everything from managing land-use policies to issuing building permits to overseeing CDBG grants to writing citations for code violations,” City Administrator Carl Geffken said in the release. “It’s too much. By breaking it into two departments with more closely aligned responsibilities and disciplines, we can streamline management and provide even better customer service to the communities those functions serve.”

Maggie Rice is being promoted to director of the new department of development services. Rice is serving as senior planner and has been a part of the development services department since January 2007.

The release states Jimmie Deer is being promoted to director of the new department of building services. Deer’s current role is the building official, and he has been with the city since July 1981. Deer previously served as a building inspector from 1981 to 1991.

“Both Maggie and Jimmie have devoted their careers to Fort Smith,” Geffken said in the release. “They’re recognized as authorities and leaders in their fields and share a passion for serving the people of our city with honesty, integrity, and fairness. These promotions recognize their dedication and outstanding performance, and we look forward to supporting them in their new management roles.”

“We had only one qualified internal candidate to fill the position left vacant when Wally Bailey resigned in June,” Geffken said in the release. “Many people assumed that was Brenda Andrews, who I asked to fill in as acting development services director. Brenda prefers to remain a senior planner, and we and Maggie are lucky to have her.”