Two Starkville employees are leaving their respective posts for different reasons.
Aldermen voted unanimously voted to fire Starkville Parks and Recreation Maintenance Supervisor Kenneth Gordon and accepted CAO Taylor Adams’ letter of resignation Tuesday.
Gordon’s firing occurred after aldermen discussed the personnel move behind closed doors.
No comments were made about the move.
Adams’ move, however, came about after he accepted a new job in Virginia Beach, Virginia. There, he will lead the city’s procurement efforts.
He will remain with Starkville until Sept. 15 and is expected to start his new job a week later.
“The opportunity to lead the staff here has been one of the great honors of my career, and I’m particularly proud of the work that we have done administratively and also with responding to the growing needs of this community,” he said. “When I look back, I’ll always have a great deal of pride in seeing the city hall constructed at the end of Main Street, as well as the completion of the Mill at MSU project. I leave knowing that work will completed with the renovation of (the city’s current administrative home) for our police department.
“I continue to fall back on the team of professionals here. I’m infinitely and forever in their debt,” Adams added. “I’ll always be thankful to the mayor and board for giving me the opportunity to be successful in this role.”
Adams officially joined the city as finance director and city clerk in 2012. He was promoted to CAO — Adams also kept the finance director duties — two years later.
But it was a failed bond referendum for a new police station that ignited Adams’ interest in city governance, Mayor Parker Wiseman said.
Adams volunteered his knowledge of public-private partnerships after 2011’s failed vote and worked closely with Wiseman and other former board members to develop a plan for a new city facility.
“I was at a fairly broken state with respect for that issue. As you were offering an idea and advice, it was just the thing I needed to pick myself up again and get going,” Wiseman told Adams. “You will have much that is part of your legacy. (The city’s new administrative facility under construction) would not be there if not for your efforts. I want to say a special word of thanks for what you did to make that a reality and for all you’ve done as a servant and employee of the city of Starkville.”
Aldermen are expected to hold a reception honoring Adams before the Sept. 15 board meeting.
“We certainly accept your resignation with regret. You and I interact basically every day. You have shown very outstanding leadership,” said Vice Mayor Roy A. Perkins. “I hate to see you go, but at the end of the day … you have to do what is best for you.”
Carl Smith covers Starkville and Oktibbeha County for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter @StarkDispatch
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