Brock holds city planner interviews
McMinnville?s Planning and Zoning Department is moving at lightning fast speed when it comes to hiring a new city planner compared to elected officials in hiring a new city administrator or urban forester.
Department director Jim Brock began the interview process yesterday and will interview several more candidates in the next week. At that time, he will be able to make a decision.
?I?m not promising I?ll hire one of them,? said Brock. ?I want the best person for the position but I?m looking forward to getting someone in here.?
The position has been open since Dec. 29 when Jack Qualls left McMinnville and moved to Kingsport, Tenn. Qualls worked for the city less than two years.
Elected officials established a city planner position in 2002. Since that time, the city has had three planners ? Lisa Milligan, Derrick Cook and Jack Qualls.
When Qualls left, Brock knew replacing him was going to be difficult. Since that time he has learned how difficult.
?It?s been hard to find someone,? said Brock. ?There is a shortage of planners. It?s hard to find one and it?s harder to keep one.?
After posting the position the first time, no applications were received. With that, Brock decided to advertise by e-mail. He sent e-mails to every planning and zoning office in Tennessee.
?We thought that word of mouth would get people talking,? said Brock. ?It worked. We have had several applicants apply. I?m going to be busy setting up interviews this week and next week.?
Of the applicants, some are from Tennessee, including one from Memphis, and Alabama.
Just like the city administrator position, the pay range is slowing down the process. With a pay range that starts in the mid-$30s, finding someone with experience is almost out of the question.
With the shortage of planners, the demand for those with experience is growing. Because of this, Brock is hoping to get one that?s right out of school and someone who is really good with the GIS system, a specialized program for planners.
If Brock makes his decision to hire someone next week, that will be the lightning fast speed of two months.