TEXARKANA, Ark. - Incoming City Manager Jay Ellington spoke Tuesday about the experience he brings to the job, his perspective on the city and how he plans to work after assuming his new duties June 1.
The city Board of Directors approved an employment contract for Ellington during its meeting Monday, ending a six-week search after the resignation of former City Manager Kenny Haskin. Asked what drew him here, Ellington spoke of Texarkana's people and potential.
"I think it's the community and the size of the community, as well as the welcomeness of the community, the excitement that the community holds and the future development.
"I see all kinds of potential. And I see some deterioration in the community. But at the same time, when you get to a certain level, we all have to figure out, what do we really want the community to be?
"And so kind of working on setting that vision together is what I would work on first. We would try to figure out what that vision needs to be, what we're going to concentrate on, and then start working with some goals in each of those areas and see how much we can accomplish. But I think opportunities are wide open," he said.
Evaluation of current city operations and more formal planning are likely to be part of his process.
"Generally communities operate off of a comprehensive plan of some type, whether those are by individual agencies or the city as a whole. But planning is a big part of what I like to do, trying to envision what we want the community to be and then put some planning steps in place. And then transitioning that right on down to the budget.
"So how do we get there from where we are now? Trying to figure out what are our options to make improvements or to change systems or whatever it might be," he said.
He also emphasized public involvement in decision-making.
"I've had to do traffic management studies. I've had to have environmental studies. I've done all of those things in relationship with the community and trying to make sure that we're communicating and touching base with people and they're participating in that process.
"I'm only one part of local government. I depend on the elected folks, on the appointed people and the citizens to make things better in our local government. So I welcome the community to step in there and help out any way they can," he said.
Ellington comes to Texarkana after a long career working for a variety of governments from coast to coast, with an emphasis on parks management and a track record of accomplishing "major public capital" projects.
Previous stops on his career path include a decade-long stint as parks director in Shreveport, Louisiana; head of the Parks Authority, which he calls a "quasi-governmental unit," of Prince William County, Virginia; and parks director for San Bernardino County, California, the largest county by land area in the continental U.S.
In California, Ellington conceived and oversaw construction on public land of San Bernardino's Glen Helen Amphitheater, which with a seating capacity of 65,000 is the largest outdoor music venue in the country. The project included building a new interstate highway exchange.
In his latest position in his home town of Ruston, Louisiana, he was instrumental in the development of the Ruston Sports Complex, a city-owned 185-acre facility with multiple baseball and softball diamonds, football and soccer fields, tennis courts, walking trails, a stocked lake and more.
"We designed it as community use Monday through Thursday and then visitor use Friday, Saturday and Sunday. And it is producing at this point in time. So it's interesting to to see it now work after I worked on it here for about three or four years.
"The tourism side of that, which is what what helps draw, is that number of visitors that support everything from hotel rooms to gas stations to restaurants. So the market here in Ruston is just saying thank you every day. We went from about 68% (hotel) occupancy rate on the weekends up to 88%," he said.
His work experience has shaped Ellington's understanding of how to operate in political environments.
"I am a participative manager, and so I work well with everybody, the elected officials, the appointed people, the department heads that are responsible and the community.
"So I will listen to politics. And in most cases, I will give you my best 'do the right thing' opinion. And then we'll figure out what we're going to do. It may not be Jay's way, or it may not be a politician's way. But we will try to figure out together what the best direction for the community is," he said.
Ellington and his wife, Kathy, plan to move into a downtown apartment Memorial Day weekend to begin their new lives in Texarkana. In June, they will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary with their three children and three grandchildren.
"I'll be working for a little while, and then I've got a few days off, but that was a part of my early discussion, because I already had this planned for quite a while. You don't pass these milestones too often," he said.
Getting to know the people of Texarkana is at the top of the list of his priorities, Ellington said.
"I look forward to interacting with them," he said. "I look forward to hearing the good and the bad of the community and trying to make it all better for all of us, with my effort along with theirs."