Council committee approves James Gregory Hourly as Watershed commissioner

The City Utilities Committee voted 5-0 to favorably recommend Mayor Dickens’ appointment of James Gregory Hourly as commissioner of the Department of Watershed Management. The committee’s vote followed the mayor’s representative’s introduction and brief remarks by Hourly, who started with the city on April 1.

Hourly told the committee the department’s mission is to “protect public health and safety and the environment” through three primary functions: supplying safe, uninterrupted drinking water to the region’s population, treating wastewater to meet state and federal standards for discharge to receiving streams (including the Chattahoochee River), and mitigating flood impacts. The mayor’s representative described Hourly as “a respected public servant” who most recently served as director of Houston Water, “the largest city-managed water and wastewater utility in the United States.”

Committee members moved and seconded the recommendation and closed the vote 5 yays, 0 nays. Council members who participated in the vote included Antonio Lewis (chair), Howard Schuch and Andrea L. Boone; the clerk opened and closed the roll call votes.

The appointment places an executive with long utility experience in charge of the city’s watershed operations. Hourly said he began his career as a frontline utility operator and has been engaged with staff since April 1, including on field repairs and operations. He briefed the committee on the department mission and said ongoing work will support the mayor’s infrastructure priorities.

The approval sends the nomination forward as the committee’s favorable recommendation; the committee did not take other formal actions tied to Hourly’s transition during this session.