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Granite Shoals picks past interim city manager for current job opening

The Granite Shoals City Council picked Marvin Townsend as the interim city manager, a position he has previously held.

The Granite Shoals City Council picked Marvin Townsend as the interim city manager, a position he has previously held.

STAFF WRITER JENNIFER FIERRO

GRANITE SHOALS — The Granite Shoals City Council picked an interim city manager, and it’s a familiar face.

The council named Marvin Townsend to the post after interviewing him during its regular meeting March 13.

Townsend, who was recommended by Texas First Group, the company hired to perform the search, returns to the city after a stint as the interim city manager in 2013, right before Ken Nickel was hired for the permanent post. Nickel resigned Feb. 28.

Texas First Group specializes in providing interim management services to Texas municipalities.

Acting City Manager Peggy Smith, who’ll return to her position as assistant city manager, said Townsend’s experience as a city manager and his familiarity with the city of Granite Shoals played a factor in the council’s decision.

“He had a successful time here,” Smith said. “He is from around this area. He’s familiar with Central Texas. He lives in Austin and has served in many other cities.”

As for hiring a permanent city manager, Smith said the council will make decisions on which direction it wants to go in the near future and that Townsend has offered to help in that process.

City Council also received the final report from the Wildlife Management Committee, which is charged with removing deer from within the city limits. In all, volunteer bowhunters removed a total of 130 deer since the program began its second year Oct. 3.

Smith said staff members asked the council to make the Wildlife Management Committee a full-fledged committee and a permanent part of City Hall. The council will consider this at a later meeting.

“I think it’s been very effective,” she said of the city’s Wildlife Management Plan to control the deer population.  

The council also passed a fence ordinance to give a better direction to residents on the kind of material they can use.

“A fence shall be constructed with good, quality material,” Smith said. “Some can be repurposed. The ordinance defines how fences should be around the corners, so you have corner visibility, which is new (to the ordinance). It was defined.”

“Good quality” means usable for its intended purpose and without visible defect, rust, rot, deterioration, or other conditions that would result in a loss of structural integrity or otherwise create a risk to health and safety, according to the ordinance.

In addition, residents must obtain a fence permit from City Hall, 2221 N. Phillips Ranch Road, before construction begins.

jfierro@thepicayune.com