During a Nov. 7 commission work session new City Manager Patrick Bryant announced a restructuring of staff, his first major personnel decisions. Veterans Ken Turner and Keri Stevens were promoted to deputy city manager and assistant city manager respectively. As far as anyone knows, these positions have never previously existed in the city’s hierarchy.
Turner will remain as finance director, a job he’s held since April 2008, but will also supervise the police department and court officers. For now Stevens will remain as city planner—she became Avondale’s first when hired in July 2010—but she will now oversee the Public Works department, communications, the city clerk and permitting.
Bryant said he’ll also hire an assistant planner who will likely start around the first of the year and ultimately transition into the city planner role.
Adding an extra layer of staffing, he said, anticipates Avondale’s population and (it’s hoped) development growth over the next few years. But he also pointed out that the “restructuring of the organization improves its efficiency and sets it up to allow for a future chain of succession.”
Turner worked as financial director for the city of Kennesaw before coming to Avondale Estates. He served as interim city manager from mid-February until Bryant’s arrival
Stevens worked in the planning departments for the City of Roswell, Ga., City of Gainesville, Ga., Atlanta, and was a planning consultant for Pond & Company before coming to Avondale.
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