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28 appointees fill out David Parsons’ administration

Steve Sones appointed Bartlett’s CAO, Jack Young vice mayor

Bartlett Mayor David Parsons, center, swears in 28 appointees to his new administration on Thursday, Jan. 12.

The new Bartlett Board of Mayor and Aldermen approved the appointment of more than two dozen positions for new Mayor David Parsons’ administration, including new Chief Administrative Officer Steve Sones, appointed Alderman Jack Young as vice mayor, and voted in Alderman Brad King as the board’s register.

The board appointed or reappointed 28 directors and other top positions for Parsons’ administration at its first meeting of 2023 on Thursday, Jan. 12.

Sones replaces Mark Brown, who retired after serving as CAO and finance director for the City of Bartlett for many years.

Sones was the assistant chief of police under Police Chief Jeff Cox, who was among 16 directors reappointed Thursday night.

Sones was a 20-year veteran of the Bartlett Police Department who began as a jailer, moved up through the Patrol Division and continued to earn promotions within the Bartlett Police Department until January 2020 when he was appointed as assistant chief.

He is a graduate of the FBI National Academy, was vice president of the 3rd session of the TBI State Academy, was chosen as Officer of the Year in 2009, and voted Best Police Officer by readers of The Bartlett Express in 2020. Sones earned his bachelor’s degree in criminal justice administration from Waldorf University and a master’s degree in criminal justice from Bethel University.

The other new appointees presented by Parsons and approved by the board include:

  • Fire Chief Tommy Gately, who replaces Terry Wiggins (retired);
  • Assistant Fire Chief Chip Webster, who replaces Gately in that position;
  • Director of Public Works Matt Crenshaw, who replaces Mike Adams (retired);
  • Assistant Director of Public Works Aaron Davidson, who replaces Crenshaw;
  • Director of Engineering/City Engineer John Horne, who replaces Rick McClanahan (retired);
  • Assistant Director of Engineering/Assistant City Engineer Erin Campbell, who replaces Horne;
  • Trey Arthur, director of Code Enforcement, who replaces Jim Brown (retired);
  • Assistant Chief of Police Chris Golden, who replaces Sones;
  • Assistant City Attorney Will Wyatt, who fills a vacant position;
  • Two new chief inspectors in the police department, Laurie Thompson and Eric Leppanen.

Along with police chief Cox, other directors reappointed to the Parsons administration include:

  • Police Department Chief Inspector J.J. Leatherwood;
  • Jeanie Underwood, executive assistant to the mayor;
  • Penny Medlock, City Clerk;
  • Bill Lloyd, City Court Clerk;
  • Kim Taylor, director of Planning & Economic Development;
  • Dick Phebus, director of Finance;
  • Kristi Francavilla, assistant director of Finance;
  • Michael Bollinger, director of the Performing Arts & Conference Center;
  • Ted Archdeacon, director of Personnel;
  • Shan Criswell, director of Parks and Recreation;
  • Paul Wright, assistant director of Parks and Recreation;
  • Debbie Gelineau, director of Community Relations;
  • City Attorney Ed McKenney Jr.;
  • City Prosecutor Rhea Clift;
  • Assistant City Prosecutor Phillip Walker.

Parsons nominated Alderman Jack Young to be vice mayor for a two-year term, a role Young held under former Mayor Keith McDonald. The vote for Young was unanimous.

And Alderman Brad King was voted in as register for the new board, which includes new aldermen King, Robert Griffin and David Reaves joining existing aldermen Young, Bobby Simmons and Kevin Quinn.

The register signs off on resolutions, ordinances and other matters voted on by the Board of Mayor and Aldermen.

The board also appointed Johnny Byrd, pastor of Legacy Church in Bartlett, as the city chaplain.

In other business, the board approved two consent agenda items, one to enter into a $36,500 contract with Barge Design Solutions Inc. for flow data analysis and modeling at two sewage storage tanks to be constructed on the Union Depot development by Keith Grant and his partners.

The work will determine where an estimated five manholes should be connected to the wet weather storage tanks, the required flow rate from each connection, and an estimate of the overflow elevation to the wet weather pumping station.

The city will own and manage the storage tanks once they are operational. Their construction is necessary to meet requirements of the City of Memphis to control sewer problems within the Fletcher Creek Basin. New development within the basin would not be allowed without the holding tanks.

Also on the consent agenda, the board approved an application for the St. Valentine’s Day Run, a fundraiser for the city Parks and Recreation Department which will be held Feb. 11 beginning at 9 a.m. at Bartlett Baptist Church on Kirby Whitten Road. The event includes 5K and 10K races.

Thursday’s meeting was the first for the new board, and it continued the tradition of allowing citizens to speak for up to 3 minutes on any topic of concern at the end of the meeting.

Two citizens, Tara Rock and Courtney Sims, asked the board to consider forming an ad hoc committee to discuss bringing back the annual Christmas Parade, perhaps somehow merging it with the new “Winter Wonderland” event that replaced it, so there can be “something memorable for the community for generations to come.”

They presented a petition with the signatures of 580 citizens who miss the annual Christmas Parade and would like to have it back in some form.

Parsons was aware of community support for bringing back the parade.

“Next month we will be bringing all of the boards and commissions before you, and I did want to recognize that we have been listening and we’ll be setting up some ad hoc committees and one of those ad hoc committees will be for the Christmas Parade,” Parsons said. “We’ve heard you and we’ll be setting up an ad hoc committee.”

Another citizen, Susan Klein, asked the board to consider forming an ad hoc committee to look at either hiring a full-time grant writer or contracting work from one to get more local, regional, state, and national grants the City of Bartlett may qualify for.

“Because there are many things that need to be done to help our community, and it doesn’t all have to be on taxpayer money,” she said.

Parsons said each department writes for and receives grant money, but his administration would look at this possibility.

Another citizen, Lou Geater, said he was glad to see so much competition for the three open aldermen seats and in the mayor’s race, and then reminded board members to consider voting on term limits as was discussed in 2022 election campaigns.

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