Home Economy Government Retired Navy commander approved as Newport city manager

Retired Navy commander approved as Newport city manager

By

Christopher Allen

-

05/09/2024

Screenshot — NEWPORT MAYOR XAY KHAMSYVORAVONG speaks during the May 8 city council meeting before a vote to hire U.S. Navy Commander Colin Kennedy. PBN SCREENSHOT/ CHRISTOPHER ALLEN

NEWPORT – The City Council on Wednesday voted 5-2 to approve a three-year contract to tap Colin Kennedy, a retired U.S. Navy commander with no municipal experience, to fill the permanent city manager role left vacant after the 2023 retirement of former city manager Joseph Nicholson. Vice chairwoman Lynn Underwood Ceglie and council member and

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NEWPORT – The City Council on Wednesday voted 5-2 to approve a three-year contract to tap Colin Kennedy, a retired U.S. Navy commander with no municipal experience, to fill the permanent city manager role left vacant after the 2023 retirement of former city manager Joseph Nicholson. Vice chairwoman Lynn Underwood Ceglie and council member and former Mayor Jeanne Marie Napolitano opposed Kennedy’s appointment. Kennedy will be paid a salary of $225,000 per year, according to the resolution. City spokesperson Thomas Shevlin said Kennedy is scheduled to assume the full-time role in July. A graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy with a concentration in Oceanography, Kennedy currently serves as CEO of the Navy Reserve Center in Newport. In July the city appointed former Finance Director Laura Sitrin to serve as interim city manager. Sitrin was one of the final candidates vetted for the position and was supported by Napolitano and Ceglie. Operating under a “Council-Manager” form of government, the city manager is often viewed as equivalent to a chief executive, overseeing daily operations of the city's roughly 350 municipal personnel. The city charter includes language that the city manger should be "a person selected on the basis of executive and administrative qualifications and experience in and the knowledge of generally accepted practices in municipal administration." However, council member Mark Aramli said Kennedy’s lack of municipal government was negated by his decades of military service and experience in organizational and executive management. “He’s an active Navy officer. And has dedicated 22 years of his life to civil service,” he said. “Keep an open mind and give the man a chance.” Some council members expressed concerns for the salary level. Council member David Carlin made a failed motion to reduce the annual salary to $189,000 per. And Napolitano said the council was not apprised of the compensation levels being considered until an April. “I am stunned with the salary. I don’t know how you justify that,” she said. Kennedy was selected among the 27 applicants from 13 states, according to the city, with five brought forth by a committee made up of local and state officials. The council then selected Kennedy and Sitrin as finalists. Newport Mayor Xay Khamsyvoravong said the administration, with input from the screening committee, analyzed compensation levels across the state for similar executive positions, and that the high cost of housing in Newport had to be taken into account since its required under city law that the city manager reside within its borders. “This is the level of compensation we determined was appropriate,” he said. “What it costs to live in this community. You have to pay a wage that is commensurate with the cost of living here.” Christopher Allen is a PBN staff writer. You may contact him at Allen@PBN.com.