Homewood council interviews city manager candidate; seeks hire before March as governance transition approaches

Homewood councilors interviewed a candidate for the city manager post and reiterated a hiring timeline tied to a governance change that will take effect Nov. 1 after a municipal election in August. Council members said they are conducting multiple interviews, expect to bring top candidates to Homewood for in-person meetings, and hope to have the selected manager on board by March 1 to help shepherd the transition.

The candidate described a long career in local government and economic development and said learning the city and meeting department heads would be priorities. “The first 100 days, any manager, you really are good with listening to your department directors that are already there,” the candidate said, adding that “effective communication is the first thing for me as a priority” during an initial period of transition.

Why it matters: Homewood is changing from a larger council structure to a manager-led model. Councilors said the city’s budget is…