By Matt Flumerfelt
In a special session, members of the Board of City Commissioners in Shawnee, Okla., will convene for the purpose of interviewing two candidates for the position of Shawnee City Manager today.
Remerton City Manager Brian McDougal is one of two individuals being considered for the position, according to a City of Shawnee meeting agenda.
A hiring decision is also expected to be made by the Shawnee Board of City Commissioners today.
The Valdosta Daily Times received a request for a photo of McDougal from a Shawnee newspaper on Tuesday.
Stories on McDougal and the other finalist for the Shawnee City Manager position were published in the Tecumseh Countywide News & Shawnee Sun and the Shawnee News-Star.
Commissioners fired former City Manager Jim Collard June 16, citing a change in the direction of the city as the reason for the move, according to Shawnee Board of City Commissioners minutes.
The Shawnee Board of City Commissioners will broadcast interviews with McDougal and fellow finalist Gary Dumas of Arkansas live via the Web today starting at 1:15 p.m. central standard time at www.shawneeok.org.
The city of Shawnee is located on Interstate 40 just 30 minutes east of Oklahoma City in Pottawatomie County. The population of Shawnee as of 2000 stood at 28,692.
When The Times asked Remerton City Council Member Lydia Day what she thought about McDougal interviewing for the position of City Manager in Shawnee, her response was, “I hope he gets it. No one should have to apologize for trying to improve their situation. Brian is a very intelligent, capable person, and if this is what he wants to do, I support him.”
A native of the Chicago, Ill., area, McDougal was hired by the Remerton City Council to serve as the city manager of the former mill town Aug. 9, 2004. He has worked in Georgia since 1991 and has been involved in government since 1994.
