Fort Smith city administrator candidates have wide-ranging backgrounds

Of the 15 people who applied for Fort Smith city administrator as of June 11, 13 have government experience, and three have government management experience in areas as large or larger than Fort Smith. One of the three is Acting Fort Smith City Administrator Jeff Dingman.

Fort Smith has an annual budget of more than $300 million, and the city has more than 1,000 employees who provide safety, sanitation, water, sewer, and other key services to a city with a population of about 90,000.

The board fired Carl Geffken as city administrator in December 2024. Geffken was hired as city administrator in March 2016 with a salary of $175,000. His annual salary when he was fired was $204,513. Dingman has been the interim administrator since Geffken’s firing.

According to a candidate list provided to Talk Business & Politics through a Freedom of Information Act request, Robert Sivick, county administrator in Whitfield County, Ga., and Travis Cutright, a deputy city manager with Peoria, Ariz., are the other two applicants with experience in larger government enterprises. One candidate, Mandy Wagner, has management experience in a large public water utility.

The applicants are from the second attempt by the Fort Smith Board of Directors in almost 19 months to hire a city administrator. The application window was extended beyond the initial June 5 deadline, with June 19 now the deadline for applicants.

The board in early March hired Daytona Beach Shores, Fla.-based Colin Baenziger & Associates (CBA) to conduct a nationwide search for a city administrator. The contract with CBA is not to exceed $33,500. City Director Lee Kemp is the board’s liaison with the city administrator search.

THE CANDIDATES
Following are the applicants, listed in alphabetical order, as of June 11.

Alan Brundrett, mayor of Azle, Texas, 2011-25, and member of city council prior to being mayor. The city has a population about 14,000 and has a council-manager form of government.

Travis Cutright, deputy city manager, Peoria, Ariz., 2023-present. The city, a large suburb of Phoenix, has a population about 191,000 and has a council-manager form of government.

Patrick Davidson, town administrator of Elizabeth, Colo., November 2021-November 2025. The town has a population of less than 2,000.

Kirsten Davis, based in Durham, N.C., is listed by CBA as being a principal in an independent advisory business.

Anthony Dimino, executive director of the Sewerage Authority of the Township of Ocean, N.J., August 2024-present

Jeff Dingman, acting Fort Smith city administrator

Patrick Gillis, listed by CBA as working for FedEx in Coos Bay, Ore.

Andrew “Andy” Merriman, city administrator, Greer, S.C., August 2020-present. Greer has a population of about 36,000 and has a mayor-council form of government, with an appointed city administrator. Merriman previously served as the deputy county manager in York County and deputy county administrator in Aiken, N.C.

Charles “Chad” Morris, former city manager in Milton-Freewater, Ore., was fired as the city manager in October 2025 after 18 months in the position. The city has a population of about 7,000. He also held various positions with the city of Niceville, Fla., between 2008 and 2014.

Thomas Pinder, adjunct professor, Eastern Oregon University, La Grande, Ore., since September 2025. Pinder also was the fire chief of the Lincoln, Ark., fire department from February 2021 to November 2022 and was assistant fire chief in Portland, Texas, from November 2022 to May 2026.

Charles Rudd, was city manager of Tarpon Springs, Fla., from October 2024 to May 2026. Rudd resigned in May 2026 following a controversial staff retreat that cost $40,000.

Robert Sivick, county administrator, Whitfield County, Ga. Sivick has held the job since September 2021. The county has a population of about 110,000, and the county has about 800 employees. Sivick also was a county manager in Wisconsin (May 2017-February 2021) and a city manager in Willamina, Ore. (July 2016-May 2017).

Thomas Vaughan, assistant mayor/community planning and development director in Camden, Ark., (population of about 10,500), January 2023-present.

Mandy Wagner, is assistant general manager of WaterOne, the independent public water utility in the Johnson County, Kan., area. Johnson County has about 645,000 residents.

Carol Webb, city administrator, Marshalltown, Iowa, August 2024-present. Marshalltown has a population of about 28,000 and has a mayor-council form of government with an appointed city administrator. Webb also worked as city administrator in Muscatine, Iowa, (August 2020-July 2024) and was deputy utilities director in Fort Collins, Colo., for 14 years.

GOVERNMENT CHANGE
The city administrator search is being conducted as a group of citizens are working to change the city’s form of government. In Fort Smith’s form of government, the city administrator is the CEO. Changing to a mayor-council form of government would place city management responsibility with the mayor.

The group is working to collect at least 2,608 registered city voter signatures to place the question on the November 2026 ballot. The signatures must be submitted by late July or early August and verified by the Fort Smith City Clerk’s office for the item to be placed on the November ballot.

If voters approve a change of government in November 2026, elections for the new government would be held in November 2028. If voters reject a change of government, state law prevents the question from returning to the ballot for four years.