Monday at noon the Henderson City Council met for a special called meeting and entered into closed session for a personnel matter.
When the council returned to council chambers at City Hall, Mayor Melissa Elliott seemed to indicate the council would hear two motions.
Hassan Kingsberry, who became interim city attorney after Rix Edwards resigned and who was apparently named the city manager a couple of weeks ago, will now serve as both the city manager and part-time city attorney.
City Manager Terrell Blackmon, also who has resigned with an effective date of January 10, said after the meeting that the meeting was held “to approve the contract and make public the salary.”
Sara Coffey made a motion, seconded by Ola Thorpe-Cooper, to start the new manager at the salary of $161,906.40, the amount apparently being considered as a level two salary for the position out of a one-to-four range.
A City of Henderson press release issued after the meeting said of the now dual role Kingsberry’s salary, “(He) will begin his role as City Manager with an annual salary of $161,906.40, which represents a savings of $18,000 compared to the salary of the outgoing City Manager, Blackmon. Additionally, he will earn $40,000 annually as the part-time City Attorney.”
The second motion, made by Michael Venable and seconded by Geraldine Champion, was to move Kingsberry from interim attorney status to part-time City attorney.
Tami Walker, Thorpe-Cooper, Venable, Coffey and Champion each voted in favor of each motion. Councilmen Garry Daeke, Lamont Noel and Sam Seifert were not present.
As to possible conflicts of interest in the dual position, Blackmon said, “I use outside counsel all the time.” He said there would “probably be some matters (Kingsberry) can’t advise on.”
The City’s press release said, “Prior to (Kingsberry’s) appointment as City Attorney, the City issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) for Legal Services, but no firm or individual responded.”
Kingsberry is scheduled to be sworn in as the new City Manager at City Hall in the Council Chambers on Monday, January 13, 2025, at 6 PM.
Kingsberry is the first African American to be City Attorney for Henderson, NC.
(Script above added and updated 5:30 p.m. Monday, January 6, 2025)
(Audio below added to post Tuesday, January 7, 2025)
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