City manager could benefit Leesburg

The Leesburg City Council is considering hiring a full-time city manager to handle the day-to-day operations of the city government.

Consideration of hiring a chief administrator comes after the Georgia Municipal Association completed a study of city government operations. The study uncovered several examples of issues that need more attention than they are currently getting.

Those doing the study were not critical of existing Mayor Jim Quinn or City Clerk Casey Moore, who handle much of the city’s administrative load currently. Quinn and Moore are competent, caring officials, but both have other jobs.

Quinn operates a weekly newspaper in Leesburg which is more than a full-time job. Moore is the city’s certified clerk, which, alone, carries full-time responsibilities.

City Council members also serve as heads of the various city committees, and they share some of the administrative responsibilities. That system works to some degree, but it has its weaknesses.

City employees occasionally don’t know where to take particular issues