The Virginian-Pilot
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VIRGINIA BEACH
Virginia Beach has hired a new director for the parks and recreation department. Michael Kalvort, who currently holds the same position in Chesapeake, will start at the Beach on Jan. 1 and make $123,000 a year.
Kalvort will replace former parks director Cindy Curtis, who was promoted to deputy city manager earlier this year.
“I am confident he will take our Parks and Recreation Department – already the best in Virginia – to an even higher level,” City Manager Jim Spore said in a statement.
Before starting in Chesapeake in January 2011, Kalvort worked for six years as deputy director of the Parks and Recreation Department in the City of Cape Coral, Fla., where he oversaw 140 full-time employees and 600 part-time employees, according to a city news release.
Spore chose Kalvort after a three-month nationwide search.
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Snarks & Dreck
As Plankton says, give the man a chance. Why bother listening to disgruntled (and hopefully former) employees grind their axes anyhow? Kalvort actually makes people in P&R work for their pay, which is what should satisfy the citizens of VB. Would taxpayers rather fund complacent slacker underlings who whine about the management, or those who do the jobs for which they have been hired? An effective manager is concerned with keeping employees productive. The only people who should care about keeping employees "happy" are the employees themselves, and if they don't like it, they can find out how happy unemployment makes them.
leaderships skills
Being the director of a large urban park system like Va Beach requires people skills, communication skills, an most importantly leadership skills. As one who has worked for this man, I can attest, those job requirments are simply not there.
Good luck VA Beach!and thanks for hiring him away from us LOL
Parks and WRECK
Just amending my "subject" line
Parks&Rec
Am among those who saw this coming and am not surprised. Good luck VB....you don't know what you are in for !!!!
123K?
You gotta love VB and it's mayor! I wonder who this clown is related too?
Close friends to the assistant city manager
Not related but good friends LOL
123k
For managing several hundred people and multi million dollar budget? That's a bargain in my book.
Let him perform already
Geez, Louise. Give the man a chance. Spore's right -- Virginia Beach's parks and recreation are second to none. I know he values them, and I know this community does, too. Go to Mt. Trashmore on a balmy day and you'll see a thousand people, all middle class, enjoying the playground the hill, the jogging paths. Jim Spore knows more about managing these resources than any of the detractors on this page. So put a sock in it, all you serial gripers.
you are right
Mt Trashmore is a great place and Va Beach does have a great park system, but what we are talking about is how this system will sustain itself under tight budget restrictions and an overall demands to lower taxes yet provide high quality services.
You see when you are only at a city for a few months and almost immediately start looking for another job there is a certain smell to it. You know what I mean?
It is kinda like Obama, he was only in the Ill. Senate for 170 before he started running for Pres. !!
You have to wonder about the recruitment process that's all.
nationwide search?
It was a nationwide search and we got someone from Chesapeake? Wow. Just my opinion but the acting director was doing a fine job since the former director was promoted. Not sure why they wouldn't just promote him and save all the trouble of a 'nationwide' search. I think P&R does a great job City - wide. They have excellent programs and facilities. Keep up the good work!