Albany City Commission names two finalists for city manager’s position

ALBANY – The Albany City Commission narrowed its field of candidates for the next city manager down to two on Tuesday night, with both of the finalists being familiar faces to the body.

In a unanimous vote, commissioners selected city CFO Derrick Brown, currently serving as interim city manager, and Terrell Jacobs, who was a finalist in 2015 when the commission ultimately selected former City Manager Sharon Subadan.

“I think both of them are real qualified,” Ward I Commissioner Jon Howard said of the picks.

Under state law, the commission must wait at least 14 days after selecting the finalists before taking a vote.

Brown began working for the city in September 2010 as senior assistant accountant and also has served as accounting manager and senior accounting officer. He was named chief financial officer in April 2015, and has served as interim city manager for the previous three months.

Jenkins has previously served as the city manager in the Georgia cities of Douglas and Union City and was assistant manager for the Athens-Clarke County Unified Government. Since 2018 he has served as municipal services consultant with the Georgia Municipal Association.

In his capacity with the GMA, Jenkins has served as facilitator for Albany commission retreats for several years, Ward IV Commissioner Chad Warbington said.

More than 30 applicants applied for the position, the commissioner said. Of those, the commission conducted interviews with five.

“I’m excited,” Warbington said. “We’ve got two great candidates. Both of these candidates are well-known to us.”

The interest of more than two dozen qualified applicants in taking on the leadership role with Albany’s city government indicates those individuals think the city has something to offer, Warbington said.

“Sometimes we are tough on ourselves and beat ourselves up,” he said. “But people want to come here. We did not have a problem getting good, high-level applicants for our city. People want to come to Albany.”

The commission did not set a date for taking a vote to select a top pick.

Staff Photo: Alan MauldinAlanMauldin[email protected]