Homewood panel interviews Charlottesville risk manager as city prepares to shift to city-manager government

Homewood City ad hoc committee members interviewed Phil Spence, the city of Charlottesville risk manager, on the committee’s search for an interim city manager to lead Homewood through a scheduled transition to a council–manager form of government.

The interview focused on Spence’s executive experience, budgeting and risk-management work, and immediate priorities he would pursue if hired to start about March 1. Committee chair Councilor Barry Smith said the committee hopes to finish first-round interviews in mid-February, bring finalists to Homewood for follow-up interviews, and have an interim manager in place “on or around March 1.” Smith said the city passed a referendum last September changing the form of government and that the new municipal election in August will produce a new council that takes office in November.

Why it matters: Homewood’s change from an 11-member council with a part-time mayor to a smaller council with a full-time city manager rewrites administrative responsibility for routine operations, hiring and budgeting. Committee members repeatedly framed the interim hire as a bridge to the new government that will decide whether to extend any contract beyond the interim period.

Spence, who identified…