Emry accepts Girard city manager position

GIRARD -- The Girard City Council, on Tuesday, extended an offer to current Fort Scott Area Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Gary Emry to become the new city administrator.

Emry, who accepted the position, will begin his new duties on Feb. 4.

According to information obtained from The Girard Press, the Girard City Council concluded its interviewing of four candidates over the weekend and chose Emry as the city's next leader, replacing former city administrator Mike West, who resigned in November 2007 but has helped the city out as an assistant the last few months.

The decision to hire Emry was made during the city council's regular meeting on Monday. Emry, who said in an e-mail to The Fort Scott Tribune on Monday that he would be in business meetings all afternoon, was not available to comment on his decision to accept the post and leave Fort Scott after working with the chamber since 2002.

Council members concluded candidate interviews over the weekend, deciding on Sunday to offer the job to Emry.

According to a Monday story in The Pittsburg Morning Sun, the council's decision came ahead of the timeline initiated by the League of Kansas Municipalities, which assisted the council in screening the resumes of candidates. The initial timeline had a new city manager in place by late February.

Emry will still serve in his duties as FSACC chief administrator for the next two to four weeks, allowing him time to give notice to his current employer as well as time for he and Girard city officials to prepare to move Emry into his new position, Girard Mayor Maurice Harley said.

The council originally had a total of 17 applications when the process to hire a new city manager began about two months ago, and narrowed the list of hopefuls down to four candidates last week.

Before starting his current position with the chamber, Emry served as the executive director of the Augusta Chamber of Commerce. He will fill the unexpired term left by West that will run until April 20, 2009. Emry's new position will come with a $55,000 annual salary, according to a Tuesday story in The Pittsburg Morning Sun.

Prior to his work in Augusta and Fort Scott, Emry served in the U.S. Air Force, including a stint in the Middle East during Operation Desert Storm. He received a bachelor of science degree in business marketing from the University of Phoenix and also attended the Institute of Organizational Management with the United States Chamber of Commerce at the University of Colorado.