Asheville's new City Manager?
Jason Sandford at Ashevegas with this scoop:
When I covered Charlotte city government as a reporter, I sat through many presentations and rezonings led by Campbell. She was doing a lot of the work on the controversial transit-related developments along the light rail line.
She later became the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Planning Director in 2004.
I'm very interested to see how her experience in pro-growth Charlotte works with an Asheville City Council that seems beholden to a virulent NIMBYism within its base of voters. Campbell's experience will be valuable on managing growth policies, but it appears this will be her first role overseeing operations unrelated to development.
Debra Campbell currently serves as an Assistant City Manager with the City of Charlotte. In this role, Debra provides technical and managerial support to Planning, Transportation and the Charlotte Area Transit departments.
For example, we have no way of knowing her views and governing philosophy on policing and crime - which are pretty big issues in any city.
This is not Campbell's fault. The City Council decided to cut short the hiring process yesterday, cancelling the public meet-and-greets with the final candidates under consideration.
UPDATE: According to the Greenville Journal, Campbell withdrew from final consideration for that city's Manager position today.
Pete's Prep Sheet: Tuesday, Oct. 16, 2018
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