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By Editor Becky Watts
ZEBULON - The Pike County Board of Commissioners held a Special Called meeting on Saturday, November 3, 2018 at 8:30 a.m. to discuss Pike County's next County Manager. They deliberated for a little over an hour and has made a decision on a new County Manager for Pike County. The applicants were Ron E. Alexander, the Community Development/Planning & Zoning Director for Garden City, and James Robert (Bobby) Bickley, formerly of SouthCrest Bank in Thomaston. (More about the candidates is in the article below.)
Based on the discussion in executive session, the Pike County Commission has decided to hire Mr. James Robert (Bobby) Bickley as the next County Manager. He will receive $72,000 annual salary plus standard Pike County benefits. The motion was made by Tim Daniel with a second by Tim Guy. The motion was approved 3-2 with Jenkins and Powers opposed. [Note from the Editor: I made a correction on this article. I had originally reported that it was a 4-1 vote, but it was a 3-2 vote with Powers and Jenkins opposed. I apologize for the error and am drinking more coffee even as I type. I don't remember ever attending a Saturday morning County Commission meeting in my 19 years of attending Pike County Commission meetings. Let alone at 8:30 a.m. on a Saturday morning meeting!]
Bobby Bickley is the new County Manager in Pike County. His starting date as County Manager will be December 10, 2018.
Thank you to First Bank of Pike for sponsoring Pike County Times’ Breaking News Alerts! First Bank of Pike has been serving customers in Pike County and the surrounding area since 1901 and offers Personal and Business banking with a personal touch. Services include checking, savings, money market, certificates of deposit, and IRA’s. Mobile Banking and Bill Payment services are also available! Click here for more. Please let First Bank of Pike know that you appreciate their sponsorship of Breaking News Alerts on Pike County's only FREE online newspaper!
If you want to find out about how you can get Breaking News Alerts, click here. Thanks for reading and supporting Pike County Times.com!
By Editor Becky Watts
ZEBULON - ZEBULON - Two candidates for County Manager were named at the September 25, 2018 meeting of the Pike County Board of Commissioners. A month later, both candidates had withdrawn their names to work in neighboring counties. A month after that, two more candidates have been named and a final candidate will be named after the 14 day period has ended.
You can read the original articles here: BREAKING NEWS: Pike County Announces Finalists for County Manager Position - Part 2 .
What does the advertisement for Pike County Manager say and what is required of those who are chosen for this position? And who are the finalists and what experiences do they have to offer to the citizens of Pike County?
County Manager Requirements (Reprinted from the first County Manager article)
The Pike County Board of Commissioners put out a request for applications for the position of County Manager after the resignation of former County Manager John Hanson. The request states that Pike County is searching for qualified candidates for a county with a population of 17,941 and an annual budget of $10 million along with 130 employees. It was stated that the County Manager is appointed by and reports to the Pike County Board of Commissioners which includes four district Commissioners and a Chairman who are elected and serve four year staggered terms.
The request stated that applicants “should have knowledge of quality growth management practices, government finance and human resource management, community planning and rural public works management, with strong leadership/communication skills.” It also state that applicants must be able to develop and implement goals and objectives as well as being able to oversee management and supervision of all County Department Heads and Directors who are not elected officials or constitutional officers. “Duties include administration of the County government in accordance with policies formulated by the Pike County Board of Commissioners.”
The Commissioners advised that they prefer someone with a degree in Business and/or Public Administration but that they would consider a combination of education, experience, and motivation. They also advised that County Official certification is preferred, but that a commitment to “complete this certification promptly” would be considered.
Interim County Manager Rob Morton also advised that during the search process, all candidates were asked if they would be willing to move to Pike County. “The answers of each candidate were considered by the Commissioners as part of the selection process,” he said.
County Manager Candidates (in alphabetical order)
Ron E. Alexander is the Community Development/Planning & Zoning Director for Garden City. His cover letter to the Pike County Board of Commissioners states that his current position has provided him with “the opportunity to become a leader and improve the community through excellent customer service and a strong system of accountability.” He also states that he has established programs “to control growth of the build environment through new policies and procedures for various effective departments,” that he has helped his community by drafting and helping to adopt ordinances to “maintain and control quality and growth,” and that he has gained experience working with many groups both in his community and throughout the state.
His work experiences include working for Garden City as the Director of Community Development/Planning and Zoning Director/Building Official. He has served in this capacity from August of 2014 to the present date. His current job includes administration of his department as well as the various duties that accompany this job such as building inspections, code enforcement, plan review, floodplain management regional planning, local state fire marshal and the administration for Planning Commissioner and Zoning Appeals as well as administering the annual operating and capital budgets for the two departments. According to his resume, he has helped to design, promote, and administer plans and policies pertaining to land use, zoning, utilities, community facilities, housing and transportation. His duties include conducting public meetings pertaining to land use and community as well as coordinating land use and community plans in Garden City. His current duties also include drafting bid documents, design of facilities, and dealing with construction oversight and administration of contracts. He also assists the City Manager and Public Works and Fire Departments with site infrastructure projects and oversees various city programs involving storm sewer and building codes.
From June of 2012 to August of 2014, he worked for the Bryan County Board of Commissioners in Richmond Hill, Georgia as a Building Official. In that capacity, he performed building inspections, code enforcement, plan reviews, management of flood plains, and acted as the local state fire marshal for unincorporated Bryan County and the City of Pembroke. He handled the operating and capital budgets for this department, oversaw employees, and coordinated the administration of capital improvement projects. His position gave him experience with bid documents, design of facilities, oversight of construction projects, and administration of contracts. In his capacity as Building Official, he worked with the County Manager and the Public Works and Fire Departments on capital improvement projects in support of the projects site infrastructure. As with his latest position, he worked with the Community Rating System program and the Building Code Effectiveness Grading System program.
From February of 2009 to June of 2012, he was employed by Government Services IPT as a Construction Engineer/Building Official in Jacksonville, North Carolina with an emphasis on “project management and building department services for military public private ventures across the United States.” His duties included technical review and compliance of construction plans, compliance to code as well as consulting and inspections on building construction. He performed scheduling, prepared cost estimate preparations, approved monthly payment applications for contractors, and issued substantial completion certificates.
From May of 1996 to May of 2008, he was employed by the Henry County Board of Commissioners as the Chief Commercial Inspector/Plan Reviewer/combination Commercial and Residential Inspector/Maintenance Technician. In this position, he supervised, trained and evaluated commercial staff, developed the commercial department budget, and handled the plan review, permitting and calculated impact fees for commercial projects. He was also the department liaison between municipal departments and “implemented a one stop shop for the commercial permitting process.”
Prior to 1996, he worked as a Maintenance Technician for the Centers for Disease Control for 5 years and as a painter for the IBEW 613 International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers for almost 5 years.
He is 1 of 49 Master Code Professionals in Georgia and has a multitude of International Code Council certifications including Fire Official, Building Code Official, Fire Inspector I and II, Master Code Professional, and Inspector related to electrical, mechanical, and plumbing. Licensing and certifications also include Flood Plain Manager, Soil and Water Conservation Level 1-B Inspector, and State Deputy Local Fire Marshal.
Mr. Alexander advised commissioners that he could begin work in Pike County three weeks after the offer was made to him to become the new County Manager.
James Robert (Bobby) Bickley
Bobby Bickley is from Thomaston, Georgia. According to his resume, his objective is to “obtain a management potion where I can utilize skills that I have obtained through management and marketing classes in conjunction with my 19 years of experience in the banking industry.” He has a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management from Columbus State University and a Minor in Marketing.
Mr. Bickley’s introductory letter to commissioners tells his history including that he was born and raised in Thomaston, Georgia and graduated from Upson-Lee in 1998. He is heavily involved in the community. He served as a member of the SERTOMA civic organization as well as serving on the Board of Directors. He was voted SERTOMAN of the year for two consecutive years and served as the Chair of the Rob Bennett Memorial Golf Tournament which helped raise more than $20,000 for the club’s endeavors. He has served as program director, secretary, and president of SERTOMA.
He has been a part of Leadership Upson and served on the Thomaston-Upson Chamber of Commerce Board for four years. During his time on the Thomaston-Upson Chamber of Commerce, he served on several committees including Youth Leadership Upson and the Tourism Assessment Committee. He also served as the Chair of Youth Leadership Upson.
He is one of the six founding members of Smoke on the Water BBQ Music Festival which benefits Upson County’s six rural fire departments. Smoke on the Water has donated $120,000 for the volunteer fire departments since its inception in 2008 through May of 2018. Smoke on the Water received the Outstanding Community Service Award by the Thomaston-Upson County Chamber of Commerce in 2010.
In 2015, Mr. Bickley invested in the RaceWay Convenience Store in Thomaston after being approached by the Racetrac Corporation to take it over “due to poor sales and bad management of past operators.” His role there consists of managing daily operations as well as personnel and vendors, scheduling, customer service, and overseeing the finances there which he has been able to do after work hours and on weekends. “In the short time that I have had ownership in Thomaston Raceway, I have received the Partner in Education Award from the Thomaston-Upson County Chamber of Commerce and the Community Involvement Award from Racetrac Corporation for the implementation of the ‘Spirit Pump.’” The “Spirit Pump” has raised approximately $8,000 in donations for the Thomaston-Upson County School System.
He ends his letter by saying, “In combination, my financial and managerial background, my ability to build and maintain personal relationships, and my strong work ethic gives me the confidence to know that I can be an asset to the Zebulon-Pike Community.”
Mr. Bickley’s work experience includes Vice President/Branch Manager of SouthCrest Bank in Thomaston. He was employed there from February 2004 to June 2018. His duties there included originating consumer, commercial, and mortgage loans, involvement in consumer, commercial, and mortgage loans as well as keeping in compliance with banking regulations, participating in cold calls to perspective customers, and counseling customers financial advice. He was also responsible for collecting and helping manage past due activity from seven SouthCrest branches and lenders. There were 15 employees under his care and his responsibilities included “the day to day operations of the bank, managing a loan portfolio of 800 loans totaling approximately 9 million dollars, and hiring and supervising bank personnel.”
He worked as a Loan Assistant at TIC Federal Credit Union in Columbus, Georgia from August 2000 to April of 2001. He followed up on delinquent loans and performed information searches for his employer.
He worked at Talbot State Bank in Woodland, Georgia from December of 1999 to August of 2000. There, he called on delinquent loans and filed paid out loans.
His resume lists his skills as strong ability to comprehend new and changing environments, being reliable and efficient, being experienced in hiring and terminating employees, being dedicated, loyal, and trustworthy, possessing excellent communication skills, being a problem solver, his ability to work through issues and resolve complications, and being a team player.
Other activities and achievements listed in his resume and not mentioned above include being a member of the Finance and Grounds Committees at Thomaston First United Methodist Church, being a graduate of the University of Georgia Commercial Banking School, and being voted one of Upson County’s Top 40 Under 40.
Closing
Pike County has been working through the process to find a County Manager since John Hanson announced his resignation in July. Two final candidates were chosen on September 25, but both Jim Hedges from Ashburn, Georgia and Michelle Irizarry from Auburn, Georgia withdrew their names for county manager for Pike County after taking other positions in neighboring counties. Jim Hedges is now the County Manager in Monroe County, and Michelle Irizarry has been accepted as Assistant County Manager in Spalding County. You can read this article from earlier this month, "Pike County Manager Candidates Both Withdraw Their Applications," by clicking here.
Pursuant to law, the final candidate for the position could not be decided until after 14 days of the notice for these two candidates, which will be after November 2, 2018. The Board of Commissioners will be holding a Special Called Meeting on Saturday, November 3, 2018 at 8:30 a.m. to meet in Executive Session and then announce their decision for County Manager when they come back into regular session.
Pike County Times will be there (with coffee in hand) to hear and announce their decision.
Thank you to First Bank of Pike for sponsoring Pike County Times’ Breaking News Alerts! First Bank of Pike has been serving customers in Pike County and the surrounding area since 1901 and offers Personal and Business banking with a personal touch. Services include checking, savings, money market, certificates of deposit, and IRA’s. Mobile Banking and Bill Payment services are also available! Click here for more. Please let First Bank of Pike know that you appreciate their sponsorship of Breaking News Alerts on Pike County's only FREE online newspaper!
If you want to find out about how you can get Breaking News Alerts, click here. Thanks for reading and supporting Pike County Times.com!