Four Deputy City Manager Finalists Named

The four finalists have been invited to Flagstaff to interview for the job of Deputy City Manager this week. The City of Flagstaff received 117 applications and conducted phone interviews with 13 candidates prior to selecting the four finalists. The finalists include:

Jay R. Harrington, currently the City Manager of Cortez, Colorado, has served in a variety of City government positions since 1991 including Town Manager of Telluride, Colorado. He holds a Master of Urban and Regional Planning degree from the University of Colorado at Denver and a Bachelor’s from Saint Lawrence University, Canton, New York.

Larry D. Rains is currently serving as the Deputy City Manager for the City of Casa Grande, Arizona. Rains has served several Arizona communities as Finance Director, City Manager or Deputy City Manager since 1989. He earned a Master of Business Administration degree from Troy State University, Alabama and his Bachelor’s degree from Western New Mexico University, New Mexico.

Isaac D. Turner, formerly the City Manager for the City of Venice, Florida, has held City Manager or Deputy City Manager positions in Ormond Beach Florida and several cities in Texas since 1997.  Turner has a Masters of Public Administration degree from the University of Kansas and earned his Bachelor’s degree from Kansas State University, Kansas.

G. Jerene Watson, currently the Town Manager for Oro Valley, Arizona, has served as a Senate staff member in Washington DC and has held a number of City government positions in Arizona since 1995 including the Director of the Community Services Department for Goodyear. Watson holds a Master of Public Administration degree from Old Dominion University and earned her Bachelor’s degree from the University of Southern Mississippi, Mississippi.

These four individuals will be in Flagstaff for interviews this Thursday and Friday.

The candidates are seeking the position currently held by Ben Fisk, who is retiring at the end of the fiscal year.  Fisk oversees Community Development, Community Enrichment, Economic Vitality, and the Public Works divisions, the City Clerk and Real Estate Offices.