It's official: Ex-assistant to be Norfolk city manager

NORFOLK

A guy with a knack for wooing residents and politicians, for getting employees to trust him and for cutting fat from budgets will serve as Norfolk's next city manager.

Starting in February, Marcus Jones will oversee nearly all facets of city government, including 4,000 employees and a $1.2 billion budget, Mayor Paul Fraim announced Tuesday.

Fraim called Jones a known quantity and said he saw no reason to spend several months and thousands of dollars to have a company help conduct a national search when Jones is the right person for the job.

Regina V.K. Williams announced on Oct. 22 that she is retiring as city manager in January. Jones was interviewed Friday, and the council unanimously decided to hire him immediately afterward, Fraim said.

Jones, 42, worked in Norfolk from 2004 through June of 2009, when he left for Richmond to become that city's budget and finance director. "We worked with Marcus for five years," Fraim said. "If you will, this was almost a promotion from within.

"All of us on council have great faith in Marcus. But one of the things that confirmed to me he was the right man for the job was talking to city employees. Many of them said they would run through a wall for Marcus."

Councilmen Tommy Smigiel and Andy Protogyrou said while they were in favor of hiring Jones, they were disappointed the interview process occurred so swiftly.

"We only hire a city manager about every 12 years," Smigiel said. "Why did we have to make this decision in three days?

"I know Marcus will do a stellar job, and he has my support. But we don't know if there are other great candidates out there."

Vice Mayor Anthony L. Burfoot said because Jones is familiar with the city, he will be able tackle some of Norfolk's most pressing issues quickly.

Williams will leave Jan. 14 after 12 years in Norfolk. She lured Jones from the state department of finance to Norfolk in 2004.

Jones will make $210,000 a year with $20,000 in deferred compensation and a $10,000 car allowance, Fraim said. Williams made $213,000 a year.

In Hampton Roads, only Virginia Beach City Manager Jim Spore is paid more, about $259,000, according to figures provided by Norfolk.

Councilman Paul R. Riddick said, "Marcus just blew us away" in his interview.

"I've been around Marcus since he was here working for the city when he was a budget director," he said. "But I had no idea his experience was so extensive before coming to Norfolk.

"He has great ideas for governing the city."

A native of Caroline County, Jones is a graduate of James Madison University and has a master's degree in public administration from Virginia Commonwealth University. He worked for the state government for 10 years and was deputy secretary of finance when he came to Norfolk as budget director. He was promoted to assistant city manager in 2007.

Richmond Mayor Dwight C. Jones said Fraim was lucky to lure Marcus Jones back.

"Marcus has the ability to build organizations and get the best performance from his staff," he said, adding that he "was able to curtail the use of costly consultants and restructure operations with city employees."

Jones will take control of a city government that has been battered by the improper use of credit cards and whose budget has suffered from state cutbacks and a reduction in tax revenues because of the economic downturn.

He said he plans to quickly fill vacancies and reorganize City Hall. "We want to build a very talented team, and there's already a lot of talent here," he said.

"Sometimes it's a matter of just getting the right people on the bus, the wrong people off the bus and everyone in the right seats."

He spoke broadly about his leadership philosophy, saying communication with the public and administration will be a priority.

He plans to ask the interim city manager, Stanley A. Stein, to remain as his senior assistant. Stein has worked for the city for 37 years.

Harry Minium, (757) 446-2371, harry.minium@pilotonline.com