Council ready to hire planning director after final candidate couldn't interview this week

Yahoo

24-05-2025

May 24—The Decatur City Council majority is ready to move on with their first choice for planning director even though Councilman Billy Jackson wants to interview another candidate.
All five councilmen said Clifford Cross, director of Economic Development, Planning and Zoning in Belleville, Illinois, impressed them in his recent interview. Four said this week that they're ready to offer the job to Cross.
However, Jackson asked the council on Monday to interview Chad Bowman, planning and development director for West Memphis, Arkansas. He said former Decatur Planning Director Michelle Gilliam-Jordan recommended that they consider Bowman.
The rest of the City Council agreed to interview Bowman, but only if he could come to Decatur this week. They said they want to move quickly because Cross said in his interview he is considering other options.
Human Resources Director Richelle Sandlin said Tuesday that Bowman informed her that he can't come to Decatur this week. She also said that Cross knows that the City Council's next regular meeting is not until June 2.
Council President Jacob Ladner and fellow councilmen Hunter Pepper, Kyle Pike and Carlton McMasters said they aren't willing to wait to interview Bowman even though they can't make an official decision until the next council meeting.
"If Bowman can't meet this week, my intention is to move forward with Cross," said Ladner, who added that he won't be available next week.
Pike reiterated his stance that he would be OK with interviewing Bowman if it were done quickly. But, since that's not the case, he said they need to move forward with Cross.
"I don't believe we should risk losing a candidate that all five council members like," Pike said.
Jackson said he doesn't think the City Council should be in such a hurry, especially since the city hasn't had a planning director since 2009 and they're risking missing out on a candidate who could be a superstar.
Gilliam-Jordan was the last planning director certified in planning before leaving to work in Huntsville in 2009. The director of development, whether it was Wally Terry or now Dane Shane, has supervised the department that was run by a planning manager the last 10 years. The council upgraded the position to planning director in November.
"It's so important that we get absolutely the right person for that position," Jackson said. "We have interviewed a candidate who is very good in everybody's opinion, but we do have a very good candidate out there who I would like to interview, and we should do everything that we can to interview this person."
Jackson said he thinks the council "shouldn't rush into this situation" even though Cross says he has other opportunities.
"We should respect that and work in the quickest way that we possibly can," Jackson said. "I don't think we should rush into a decision based on his schedule versus the schedule of the citizens of Decatur."
He said he doesn't have a problem with the possibility of appointing Cross. He said he just thinks it's important that the council do its due diligence in the search, and that includes an interview with Bowman.
After interviewing three candidates and holding a reception for two of them, Bowman and Cross were among the five supplemental applicants added late in the selection process.
Sandlin initially recommended Cross because of his 25 years in planning. She added Bowman with "reservation because of his limited scope of experience."
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