Rocky Top sets Jan. 31 workshop on charter changes
Rocky Top would return to its previous form of government with a strong mayor and council running the city instead of a city manager if new Mayor Kerry Templin has his way.
Templin has called a special “charter workshop” meeting of the City Council for 6 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 31, to discuss the steps it would take to amend the city’s charter through the Tennessee General Assembly.
The charter was changed to the current city manager form of government in 2016, after the city had for decades operated under the strong mayor/council setup. At that time, Michael Foster was hired as city manager, and he remains in that position since his contract was renewed for five years in September.
Templin announced at the end of last Thursday’s City Council meeting that he was calling the special charter workshop, following up on a pledge he made during last fall’s mayoral campaign.
“We’re going to look at the existing charter, and then look at the original charter that was in effect until 2016, when it was changed after the name of the municipality changed to Rocky Top from Lake City,” he said Monday.
“I’d like to see it go back to a mayor-council arrangement, with a city manager or administrator option, but where our elected officials have more involvement in the day-to-day operations,” Templin said. “Under the mayor-council setup, you would have a water commissioner, streets commissioner, recreation commissioner, and so forth.
“I think there is a tremendous downside to the situation we’re in right now,” he said. “It seems the citizens feel they are not as involved and represented by the city government as they should be. They elect us to represent them, but they only see us at monthly board meetings. I’d like to change that.”
Templin said that at least 10 cities within 30 miles of Rocky Top have the strong mayor/council form of government, including Caryville, Jacksboro, LaFollette, Jellico, Harrogate, Cumberland Gap, Tazewell, Huntsville, Oneida, Wartburg, Sunbright, Lutrell, Plainview, Farragut and Winfield.
Statewide, he said, there are 251 cities with the mayor-council setup. “Of those, 30 have an administrator option, and there are 70 to 78 that have a city manager form of government,” Templin said.
A charter change won’t happen overnight.
“It’s an involved process,” Templin said. “It takes a resolution from the city – which requires four votes on the City Council – and the new charter has to be written up and looked over” to make sure it’s in compliance with state law.
“Then our local representatives have to take it to the legislature to be approved,” he said.
If that happens, the proposed new charter then has to come back to the council where it has to be voted on as an ordinance twice for final approval, but this time only with a simple majority, which would require only three council votes.
“I would like to get it before the legislature this year, but I don’t know whether that can happen,” Templin said.
“I really believe there has to be more involvement of the [council] over the city departments, but with the commissioners working through the city manager,” he said. “And there should be more public involvement, discussion and debate on what we’re doing.”