Columbus has hired Mike Anderson of Decatur as the new director for Trotter Convention Center.
Ward 5 Councilman Kabir Karriem on Wednesday afternoon confirmed that the city council hired Anderson during an executive session Tuesday night. Anderson, a former Navy commander, is the Mississippi State University Extension Service’s e-BEAT Region 3 coordinator and an adjunct professor of economics at East Mississippi Community College in Scooba.
Anderson will replace longtime director Frank Goodman, and he will inherit a renovated Trotter Convention Center downtown — a $2.3-million project the city hopes to complete this month. He will also manage the farmer’s market and Friendship Cemetery, book events for Riverside Park and the Old 82 Bridge and maintain city buildings. His annual salary will be $53,000.
Karriem said Anderson impressed the council during his interview Tuesday night during executive session. Karriem said he is excited to bring Anderson’s leadership, experience and aggressiveness to the position, especially since he will replace 28-year veteran director Goodman, who has directed the Trotter since it opened in 1987.
Councilmen on Tuesday also interviewed Columbus resident John McCall, an event services consultant who has provided services for venues such as The Fed-Ex Forum in Memphis and Bryant Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa.
“Mr. Anderson’s leadership and experience gave him the edge,” Karriem said. “Both were exceptional candidates, and the city would have been proud to have either of them in this position. (Anderson is) going to have big shoes to fill. The city will be losing something when Mr. Goodman goes. But every good thing comes to an end.”
Mayor Robert Smith agreed with Karriem’s assessment of both Trotter director candidates and commended them both for their interviews.
“We had two very qualified applicants,” Smith said. “It was a toss-up.”
The Dispatch could not reach Anderson for comment on Wednesday.
Goodman said he will stay on staff to train Anderson for as long as it takes. Then he plans to exhaust his built-up vacation and officially retire sometime in April.
“If he feels comfortable in a week or two weeks, I’m going to leave him with it,” Goodman said. “It’s not really a hard job. But it’s a 24/7 job where there’s a lot to take care of.”
Goodman said he is glad he’ll see the Trotter renovations complete before he leaves. The city created the Trotter in 1987 by renovating the old National Guard Armory and city auditorium. The most recent renovations updated the upstairs “Columbus Room” — complete with state-of-the-art sound equipment — and improved the center’s three lower level ballrooms.
Goodman said the Trotter is booked for nearly every weekend this year, and he’s already taken reservations for 2016 and 2017.
Goodman said it would be bittersweet to leave his longtime post, but he feels it’s time to move on and spend more time with his family. An avid Mississippi State University baseball fan, he said he’d also get to take better advantage of his season tickets this spring.
“I came into this job in a new building, so it’s going to be nice to leave this job from a new building,” he said. “I’m still going to live in Columbus because this is my home. And I’ll still be around in city hall from time to time checking on them.”
Zack Plair is the managing editor for The Dispatch.
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