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Monday, 17 August 2009 15:43

Sabiston on the job

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Paul Sabiston is here. Pete Connet is leaving.

Sabiston, the new Roanoke Rapids city manager started today, meeting employees, getting briefed by Connet, the interim city manager who will leave Thursday.

“Pete is updating me on various projects and issues,” Sabiston said today at city hall. “I’ve talked to the mayor. I’ve met with all the department heads.”

The new city manager also plans to meet with city council members before the panel’s next meeting, he said.

There are also routine matters he must take care of, learning city policies and procedures, development standards and codes. “We’re still going through things to determine the different projects and day-to-day operations,” the former town administrator of Shallotte said.

Connet said he has been answering questions and briefing Sabiston on issues such as the Brandy Creek community. Several matters like an odor in the community have been taken care of, he said.

Sabiston comes to the city as its fund balance improves, an improvement coming from actions taken by city council earlier in the year to keep it from falling below the 8 percent threshold required by the N.C. League of Municipalities. “It shows the staff and city council did the right thing,” he said. “We’ve got a good budget.”

Measures taken by council when the city learned in February it faced a $664,000 shortfall mean when it closed the books at the end of June, its fund balance increased 8.9 percent for a total of 17.2 percent. That represents a $1.9 million unreserved fund balance. Fund revenues for the year are expected to increase by more than $900,000.

Sabiston is also hopeful the budget situation will improve even more and expects the city’s audit, which is completed, to be a good one.

He said it is important to remember the good news about the fund balance doesn’t mean the city is in a position to do extra spending. “Hopefully it will get better. I think the finances are heading in the right direction.”

One of the first things Sabiston must do as new city manager is select a new planning director. “We’ve got some applications on file.”

Sabiston wants someone who will be able to run the entire department. “We’re still too small to have someone to sit in a cubby hole,” he said.

The welcome he has received thus far has been warm, he said. “I’ve got a lot of phone calls from people I don’t know telling me they’re glad I’m here. The family has enjoyed it.”

For Connet, it may be time to relax, although the league has already contacted him about another interim job, he said.

He leaves Roanoke Rapids feeling positive about the city. “Roanoke Rapids has a lot to offer,” he said. “There are still some bumps in the road.”

He believes, however, the Carolina Crossroads project will take off. “There’s a lot of positive things happening in the city. The national and state economy has hit all cities and counties across North Carolina.”

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