Council members are to pick their top six candidates then they will work it down to the final list.

The two names of local interest on the list are, current Loudon mayor, Jeff Harris and surprisingly, Loudon County Economic Development Agency, EDA, director, Jack Qualls. Looks like Harris and Qualls are both looking for new jobs. Oddly enough, Harris was recently appointed to as chairman of the EDA kind of making him one of Qualls bosses. Curious what the EDA board of directors will think of their director looking for another job. Incidentally, we recently learned that the assistant at the EDA had resigned and taken a job with the Loudon County Chamber of Commerce.  

As the process continues, Harris will recues himself from the selection process since he himself is a candidate for the job. The whole thing is just odd.

Council members are planning to have their lists by the January 29th council meeting.

I had several questions for the city attorney on the process and he was kind enough to help out. 

Is the single column list ranked by the firm that did the search?

Municipal Solutions divided the candidates into three sections: Green, Light Green, and Yellow to correlate with the categories of recommended candidates; possible candidates; and alternate candidates. The order of appearance within each category does not correspond to a ranking, but Green candidates carry a stronger recommendation than Light Green. Candidates in red font are more recent applicants who are still in the evaluation process.

Is the ranking based on their top to bottom recommendations?

No. The first named candidate is not considered the best candidate or the last candidate the least. They are ranked based on green, light green, and yellow.

How long does council have to pick their top 6? 

Council will take as much time as needed to narrow the pool to an appropriate number to conduct comprehensive background checks on and interviews with.

After the top 6 are chosen, will there be an interview process?

Yes.

When would a vote possibly be taken? 

Currently, a vote to select finalists is scheduled for January 29^th. This schedule is subject to change.

Click Here For Candidate List