The Demorest City Council on Thursday voted to hire former Gainesville Mayor Mark Musselwhite as interim city manager. The council voted unanimously to hire Musselwhite at a rate of $2,000 per week until a permanent successor to Kim Simonds can be hired.
Simonds recently stepped down as Demorest city manager this week after four years on the job. Musselwhite will now take over that role as the council searches for a permanent successor.
“We are a city manager type run government here in Demorest, so, without a city manager running our day-to-day operations, we do need someone to come in and step in, to fill in, on an interim basis,” said Demorest Mayor Jerry Harkness.
Harkness added, “We searched around for someone who can come in, step in for a short time before we can advertise it [the job], publicize it, and hire someone.”
While he did not elaborate on what led to Simonds’ departure, Harkness did say he was grateful for all she had done.
“Kim served us for numerous years, and I appreciate everything that she’s done for the city and all the hard work that she’s put in here at the city, and we appreciate her very much.”
The council did not set a timeline for naming a permanent successor.
Simonds’ departure comes two years after a highly-publicized split with former Demorest Mayor Rick Austin over her decision to fire the city’s police chief. Simonds fired chief Robin Krockum after he refused her directive to fire a police officer who criticized the city’s trash cans on social media. Following intense public and legal pressure, Simonds and the council members who backed her, Nathan Davis and John Hendrix, moved to reinstate Krockum.
Of the three, only Hendrix remains with the city. Nathan Davis resigned from the city council earlier this year.
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