El Dorado ends up going with original choice for city treasurer - Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

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EL DORADO -- Nearly two weeks after a motion failed on Mayor Veronica Smith-Creer's preferred choice for a new city treasurer, the El Dorado City Council last week approved the mayor's original recommendation -- former City Collector Trena Dean.

Six council members voted aye for Dean as city treasurer, while Council Member Billy Blann abstained. Council Member Dianne Hammond was unable to attend the meeting.

Soon after the vote Wednesday, Council Member Vance Williamson, who also chairs the city's Finance Committee, told Dean that he planned to meet with her soon.

June 5 was the deadline to apply for the treasurer post.

A day before the deadline, Williamson stressed the need to appoint a new city treasurer as soon as possible, citing factors -- including the coronavirus pandemic and the pending relocation of Murphy Oil headquarters to Houston (two candidates for the treasurer job were current or former Murphy employees) -- that have created economic uncertainties for the city.

Additionally, in the absence of a treasurer, the City Council has had to postpone a vote to make budget adjustments for the first quarter of 2020.

The former city treasurer was terminated May 20.

"We've had the perfect storm and this is not a good time to be without a city treasurer," Williamson has said.

Council Member Paul Choate echoed that statement at the start of the specially called meeting, saying, "We've got half a dozen resumes in front of us. We don't need to tarry. We need the city back up and running ASAP."

The City Council initially convened a specially called meeting May 29 to consider the mayor's recommendation to transfer Dean into the treasurer's office.

A motion by McGhee to make the appointment died for lack of a second.

At the time, several City Council members referred to a 2004 city ordinance that requires a majority vote to appoint the city treasurer after due consideration of qualifications.

Immediately after the meeting was adjourned, City Council members requested copies of the ordinance, which spells out the general duties of the treasurer; city personnel policies, including a clause that gives first preference to qualified city employees for open positions; and a salary/wage survey that was drafted for the city in 2007.

Following the vote Wednesday, Williamson stressed that the City Council's deliberations did not have any bearing on Dean's character, work ethic or qualifications.

"The wheels of government turn slowly. It's a process. We may not have agreed on the process, but we got here," Williamson said.

Dean has an extensive background in accounting and she has served as El Dorado city collector since late 2019.

Smith-Creer previously said Dean was already familiar with the city's accounting software.

"All the news that we've heard out of the city collector's office has been good," Choate said.

Blann later explained that he abstained because he "did not agree with the process."

"I wanted to follow the ordinance, and I think we should have done interviews. This is not against anybody's qualifications or anything like that. I just wanted to follow the ordinance," Blann said.

With the treasurer position filled, Smith-Creer said she can move forward with filling two other vacancies in City Hall -- city collector and payroll/personnel clerk.

The positions had been advertised before Smith-Creer learned of the 2004 ordinance.

She said eight applications had been submitted by the May 29 deadline.

However, after McGhee's motion to hire Dean as treasurer died the day of the deadline to apply for collector and personnel/payroll clerk, the mayor said she was placed in a holding pattern for filling the positions until the hiring process for city treasurer was resolved.

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El Dorado ends up going with original choice for city treasurer - Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
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