Greencastle interviews borough manager finalists

January 23, 2008|By ASHLEY HARTMAN

GREENCASTLE, PA. ? The Greencastle Borough Council interviewed the top two candidates for the borough manager position Wednesday evening in a closed-door executive session and hopes to announce its decision early next month, according to Council President Charles Eckstine.

The two candidates are Kenneth Womack of Carlisle, Pa., and Gordon Jones of Virginia, Eckstine said.

"The personnel committee made that decision and I guess they went on experience and probably education and qualifications," Eckstine said. "I really want to get this position filled."

Since early November, Womack has been serving as the borough's interim manager through Keystone Municipal Services, a government consulting firm that provides various services, such as interim management.

Ken Myers, who served as borough manager for 22 1/2 years, resigned in November to accept a position as manager of the borough of Huntingdon, Pa.

Seven applied for position

During the council's meeting Jan. 7, council members Nancy Dunn, K. Duane Kinzer and Christopher Grimm were appointed to the personnel committee, and that committee was given the task of going through the seven applications received for the borough manager position and bringing a maximum of three candidates to the council to interview.

"We were very pleased to get seven people (to apply)," Eckstine said. "We were hoping to get someone that had the experience in borough management and would know right from the beginning what needs to be done."

Eckstine said Jones has a very extensive background in planning, zoning and town management and was the manager of Purcellville, Va. Womack is a retired U.S. Air Force colonel who has extensive planning and zoning experience, has experience with computers and was assistant borough manager in Carlisle, Eckstine said.

"One of the candidates is the interim borough manager, and if council selects him as borough manager then we expect him to start for us right away," Eckstine said.

Engineering degree a plus

Qualifications for the position include a degree and experience with municipal governments. An engineering degree would be a plus, but would be hard to come by, Eckstine said previously. The position would pay about $60,000 per year depending on qualifications, Eckstine said in December.

Some of the borough manager duties include the activities of all the municipal departments except for the police department, supervising employees in those departments, recommending wages and salaries for personnel under his or her supervision, preparing budgets for each fiscal year, administration of the budget after its adoption by the council and attending all council meetings and other committees as required.

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