07:23 AM Meet Randy Morris - Interiem City Manager - Dothan

Rickey Stokes

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Posted by: RStokes
[email protected]
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Date: May 02 2024 8:01 AM

DOTHAN:     Today marks the second day that Mr. Randy Morris leads the 1,000 plus men and women who work for the City of Dothan as Interiem City Manager.

Randy Morris started, I beleive, in the water department of the City of Dothan. From there Randy Morris moved to the Engineering Department where he worked with Jerry Corbin who served as Dothan’s City Engineer.

From there Randy Morris was promoted to Director of Dothan’s General Services Department to manage 52 plus employees in that department.

After Kevin Cowper arrived as Dothan City Manager the decision was made by the Mayor and ASSociate Commissioners to create the position of Assistant City Manager.

Randy Morris was then promoted to Assistant City Manager.

When I served on the City of Dothan-Houston County Communications District Board and as Chairman of the Board I had the opportunity of working around Randy Morris who was a Board Member. I found him to be someone easy to work with, someone who did his homework and actually had read the agenda before coming into the meeting. He was knowledgeable of the items on the agenda and had done his homework in order to make effective decisions.

As watching him in his role as Assistant City Manager, Randy Morris is a good project manager to stay on top of projects and know what is going on.

While being the actual City Manager, Randy Morris role changes. He now serves, while it is Interiem, seven bosses known as the Mayor and ASSociate Dothan Commissioners. They each have different ideas, agenda, and things they want.

The group of commissioners Dothan has today are more self centered and vindictive when they do not get their way.

That will be somewhat of a learning curve for Randy Morris as he navigates the challenges before him to steer the ship called the City of Dothan in the course best for the citizens of Dothan. While at the same time maintaining the desires of the seven bosses that he serves.

The City of Dothan government is a strange creature. The Personnel Director, Delvik McKay, does not work for or report to the City Manager, Mayor or Commissioners. The Personnel Director is employed by the five member Dothan Personnel Board and reports only to those five members.

The five members are appointed by the Citizen’s Supervisory Committee which is made up of appointments from Civic Clubs in Dothan.

The City Manager, Mayor or ASSociate Commissioners have zero authority over the Personnel Board, their budget or who they employee as legal representatives. All the Mayor and ASSociate Commissioners can do is pay the bill.

That in itself creates challenges for a City Manager. And recent issues that Dothan City Manager Kevin Cowper received blame for were not totally his blame.

So as "the man in charge" Randy Morris enters somewhat different waters then he has served before. And just working for the 7 different personalities is a challenge.

RSN has confidence in Randy Morris and his leadership ability. While not being around him a lot, I have found him to be a man of integrity who wants to do what is right. But in the end the large decisions and purchases are not his decision. While he can bring ideas and recomendations before the Mayor and ASSociate Commissioners, the final YEA - NAY is that of the Mayor and ASSociate Commissioners.

We wish Randy Morris well. Dothan’s future, at this time, rest solely on your shoulders and leadership ability.

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