The City of Nome is one step closer to selecting a new city manager, as two finalists for the position will visit this week for a public meet and greet before final interviews with the Nome Common Council.
The two candidates, Robert C. Evans and W. Lee Smith III, were chosen from a pool of more than 30 applicants vetted by the professional recruiting firm CB & Associates.
Evans most recently served as the City Administrator of Lamar, CO, a position he held since 2021. Before that, he managed three Texas communities—Willis, Karnes City, and Comanche—between 2015 and 2021. Each are rural communities with populations under 8,000.
He also served in the U.S. Army from 1999 to 2012, retiring at the rank of lieutenant colonel.
Evans tendered his resignation with the City of Lamar on March 18 as he entertains options for his future. He was recently announced as a frontrunner for a City Administrator position in Cody, WY.
Smith has a long history in county government, most recently as County Manager for Chatham County in Savannah, GA, from 2014 to 2022. Prior to that, he managed Wayne County and Washington County in North Carolina and worked in economic development and emergency management roles dating back to 1986.
The former county manager was placed on administrative leave in July of 2022 due to an unspecified "recent chain of events." Smith described the move as "personal and very political". Smith later signed a severance agreement that amounted to $258,211.20.
In a statement, City of Nome Mayor John Handeland said he was pleased with the caliber of candidates brought forward by the recruiting agency.
“I am excited that they are excited about the possibility of joining our community,” Handeland wrote. “We look forward to having a permanent city manager in place, and thank both Brooks Chandler and Dan Grimmer for serving on an interim basis.”
A recruitment brochure created by the search firm lists the salary range between $185,000 and $210,000. The City of Nome paid CB & Associates $36,500 to assist in the search.
The public is invited to meet Evans and Smith at an event Thursday, March 20, from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at City Council Chambers in City Hall. The Common Council will then hold a special session on Friday, March 21, at 5:30 p.m. to conduct final interviews. KNOM will livestream the Friday event on Facebook and YouTube.
