Executive Decision

In a couple of hours, the Pensacola City Council will consider selecting its Council Executive. The board will be taking a look at four candidates.
The council has been searching for someone to handle its administrative needs for more than a year. Recently, the city’s HR department presented council members with a list of finalists for the position. The council met three of candidates during Monday’s Committee of the Whole meeting, and have been supplied with their resumes, biographical information and questionnaires the candidates completed as part of the application process.

—Donald Kelly has worked as an urban planner for the city of Pensacola for the past seven years. From 1997 to 2005, he worked as a planner for Escambia County. He is requesting $77,000 per year.
“Having worked as an urban planner for the city of Pensacola for seven years and having observed the on-going transition to our new form of government, I believe I have a firm understanding of the role of the council executive and the expectations of the city council.”

—Terence Milstead, PhD, is currently an assistant professor in the Department of Geography and Planning at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina.
He is requesting $80,000 per year.
“I was raised in Pensacola and spent the first 29 years of my life there (six of which were spent working as a planner). After having now spent more than a decade away pursuing advanced education and work experience in the field of urban and regional planning, both in the U.S. and abroad, I would be very interested in returning to my hometown is some professional planning/administrative capacity with the city.”

—Marinda Spradley has worked as an office manager with the Wattsville Water Authority in Alabama since 2009. Prior to that, she served as city clerk/administrator in Pell City, Ala. She is requesting $65,000 per year.
“As city clerk, I was responsible for all city records and ensuring that the council and all other city entities followed open meeting laws.”

—Vanessa Watson is currently a teacher at Warrington Middle School in Pensacola. She has also worked as a mortgage processor/closer with Navy Federal Credit Union. She has not specified salary requirements.
Watson describes herself as an “experienced management executive with a comprehensive understanding of economic development strategies, modeling and community development.”

The city council will consider these candidates during a special Committee of the Whole meeting scheduled for 5 p.m. this afternoon at Pensacola City Hall, with it regular board meeting to follow.