Posted: 5:00 a.m. Saturday, May 17, 2014

City manager candidate not afraid of challenges

By Rick McCrabb

Staff Writer

    MIDDLETOWN — Willie Norfleet Jr. isn’t afraid to move from job to job,city to city.

Since1979, Norfleet Jr., one of the five finalists for the city manager’s job in Middletown, has held five jobs infour states.

    “Those who don’t want challenges stay put,”he said Friday afternoon after driving into Middletown from theCincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport. “I like to get out thereand test my skills.”

    Norfleet Jr. and the other candidates —Doug Adkins, director of community revitalization, Middletown; Cathy Davison,former city manager, Steubenville, Ohio; Les Landen, Middletown law director;and Jane Howington, city manager, Newport, R.I. — will participate in a publicforum from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. today in the City Council chambers in the lowerlevel of the City Building.

    There will be a facilitator who will askquestions given to him by the audience. Then the audience will have anopportunity to provide written feedback on the candidates, and those commentswill be given to city council who will select current city manager JudyGilleland’s replacement. Gilleland is set to retire June 6. She makes $127,654a year.

Forthe last two years, Norfleet Jr. has served as city manager in Socorro, Texas,a city with 32,000 residents, or 16,000 fewer than Middletown. He was hired asthe city’s first permanent city manager since 2008 and he’s paid $135,000 ayear.

    Before that, he was fired as city managerin Compton, Calif., after the city rackedup a $25 million deficit and officials were critical of his handling of budgetcuts and sweeping layoffs meant to balance the budget, according to newspaperreports.
vcm: I would strongly suggest you research Compton before you pass judgement on this action.

Norfleetsaid he thought he was unfairly targeted for having elected officials make hardfinancial decisions, but he added he could have better warned the council ofthe deficit, according to reports.

    Ironically, when asked one of his careerhighlights, he mentioned balancing the budget in Compton and getting the city onthe “right” financial track.

    While driving to the City Building on Friday afternoon,Norfleet Jr. said he noticed Middletown needed businesses tofill some of its empty retail spaces.

    Still, he said, the Middletown job was “veryattractive” despite its “challenges.”

UNMATCHED COVERAGE

Allthis week the Journal-News profiled the five candidates for the city managerposition. All of the profiles appear online at www.Journal-News.com:

TUESDAY: Cathy Davison

WEDNESDAY: Doug Adkins

THURSDAY: Jane Howington

FRIDAY: Les Landen

TODAY:Willie Norfleet