Bolivar city administrator to retire

Bolivar City Administrator Tracy Slagle is retiring from the municipality.

Slagle, who took on the role in 2018 following an interim stint in the job, is exiting the city on Jan. 15, according to a news release.

“This is the most rewarding job I have ever had,” Slagle said in the release. “I’m so proud of the staff we have here in the city. I appreciate our mayor and felt we’ve worked together to bring the requests of the citizens and the direction of the board of aldermen to fruition while still maintaining a conservative fiscal budget."

Slagle in 2012 was hired by the city as a resource development coordinator. Three years later, she became deputy city administrator under former City Administrator Darin Chappell. When Chappell resigned in 2017, Slagle took on the role in the interim. In early 2018, she officially became the first woman in the city's history to hold the role.

“I’m proud to have worked alongside the first woman to lead Bolivar as an administrator,” Mayor Christopher D. Warwick said in the release. "Tracy’s success shows the power of diversity in leadership. I hope she serves as an inspiration for future leaders in our community.”

As city administrator, Slagle is credited with leading the municipality through the COVID-19 pandemic, balancing the city's budget, spearheading an information campaign for a successful capital improvement tax reallocation measure, and reestablishing the city's parks and recreation program.

The city's human resources department and a search committee are working to find her successor, according to the release.

“The search committee will recommend candidates to the city’s personnel committee, which is made up of four aldermen,” Warwick said in the release. “Ultimately, the board as a whole will have the final decision on which candidate will be the next city administrator.”