By Shay Bowman
Buena Vista is searching for a new city manager and a new council member, following the resignations of city manager Jason Tyree and council member Steve Webb.
Tyree said his resignation is unrelated to the recent changes in leadership, with newly elected mayor, Jesse Lineberry, and two other council members beginning their terms earlier this month.
“I just felt like for me personally, it was time,” Tyree said. “Mayor Lineberry and I have gotten along swimmingly. We’ve gotten along great. We’ve had no issues, no head-butting, no arguments, nothing like that.”
Tyree is now set to become the Rockbridge County zoning administrator, a new position approved by the board of supervisors last year. He said he plans to stay in Buena Vista while also pursuing his doctorate in public administration.
Stephanie Hardy, co-owner of downtown bookstore Leaf and Lore, said she is sad to see Tyree go.
“I think Jason did a great job,” Hardy said. “He’ll be missed, definitely, and I think, hopefully, they’ll find someone that can come in and do as well as he did.”
At the city council meeting on Jan. 15, Tyree presented two options for finding his replacement.
The first option would be to appoint Buena Vista Police Chief Wayne Handley as the interim city manager. Last year, Handley announced plans to retire as chief of police, effective June 30.
“For me, it makes sense for a couple of different reasons,” Tyree said. “When the city manager leaves, people start getting worried, and I think with Chief Handley coming in, it kind of quiets that down, at least for a little while.”
Tyree said Handley’s experience and lack of desire to be a long-term city manager makes him a good candidate.
He said serving as an interim city manager can help or hinder the candidate’s chances of holding the position in the future. He added that an interim city manager can face significant, sometimes unwarranted public criticism, which can negatively impact their prospects of being the next city manager.
Because Handley does not want the position long-term, Tyree said it would give all other candidates fair consideration for the job.
“If there is an internal candidate, it gives them a level playing field with any other candidate without sort of putting their neck out there ahead of time to get chopped off,” he said.
The second option proposed to council is to hire the Berkley Group, a local government consulting firm, to bring in an interim city manager.
“These are generally managers who have years of experience,” Tyree said. “But there is a high cost to that.”
If the city goes with the Berkley Group, Tyree said the city manager line-item budget would increase by $14,000 per month, based on a 40-hour work week.
City council member Ron Cash said the cost of that option is too high. “Nobody can do the city manager’s job in 40 hours, so $14,000 has potential to be $20,000 a month and we really can’t afford that,” Cash said.
He added that he wants to consider a third option for city manager.
“To my way of thinking, and a few other people, Chief Handley’s already divorced Buena Vista,” Cash said. “So, if he wants a divorce, take your divorce and go.”
He said he wants to see someone with a connection to Buena Vista as the next city manager.
“We need to find the right person from among the citizens of Buena Vista, somebody who has some roots already, who has some skin in the game, somebody who stands to either gain or lose something,” Cash said.
Lifelong Buena Vista resident Jeffrey Cash said he wants to see a new face in the city manager’s office.
“When Jesse Lineberry ran for mayor, his main campaign point was he wanted to get elected to make changes,” Jeffrey Cash said. “This won’t be making a change. This is the same old, same old. Same people just moving in different jobs.”
To fill the vacant city council seat left by Webb’s exit, the city is beginning an application process. So far, four candidates have applied.
Ron Cash said city council will appoint a council member to fill Webb’s unexpired term until a special election can be held in November. Then, citizens will elect someone to serve the final year of the term.
In his resignation letter, Webb said the voters have “split Buena Vista into two groups,” referencing religious tension that has “driven a wedge” in the city. Webb declined to comment.
The city council will revisit its options for finding a city manager and council member at its next meeting on Feb. 5.
Tyree said if city council agrees to Handley becoming the interim city manager on Feb. 5, he proposes that Buena Vista Assistant Police Chief Dave Clements be sworn in on Feb. 17 as chief of police.
Then, Handley would shadow Tyree for about a month. Tyree’s last day in the city manager’s office would be March 15, exactly five years after he began the position in 2021. But Tyree said he is willing to stay longer if council asks him to.
Ron Cash said it is daunting to have to find a new city manager and a new police chief, as well as fill a vacant council seat, all while a new mayor and two council members are getting started.
“It’s just too many balls in the air at one time, and it’s going to be hectic,” Ron Cash said.