The Chapel Hill Town Council has started the process of finding a replacement for Town Manager Roger Stancil, who announced his intent to retire this fall.
The council held a work session Wednesday to discuss Stancil’s replacement. Stancil, who was first appointed by the town council in 2006, has served as town manager for 12 years and will hold his position while the selection process is underway.
Chapel Hill Mayor Pam Hemminger praised Stancil for giving the council ample time to find an appropriate replacement. She expects the process to take six months, but said the council’s goal is to identify the new town manager before they break for the summer.
“Roger gave us plenty of lead time, so we have the time to get the right person for the job," Hemminger said.
Hemminger said the new manager should be able to handle the challenges the town faces in the upcoming years.
“It’s got to be someone who wants to embrace who we are as a community,” she said. “Someone who understands the value of partnerships and working together."
Public input will play a part in the hiring process. In one stage of the recruitment, final candidates will undergo a situational interview where community members and partners will give evaluations on how those candidates responded to a simulated situation.
“We want the community to be involved in this, and I think it’s going to be very informative to hear what the community says about what they see the challenges of our town are," Hemminger said.
Town Council Member Jessica Anderson believes that public input is essential to the selection process. Anderson said community involvement plays an important part in making Chapel Hill unique and the next manager needs to value that involvement.
