New La Grange City Manager Resigns Six Months Into Job
Published: Wed, 08/30/23
New La Grange City Manager Resigns Six Months Into Job
Fred Bell
The Fayette County Record
By ANDY BEHLEN, The Fayette County Record
August 29, 2023
La Grange City Manager Fred Bell resigned on Monday, Sept. 21. The City Council held a special meeting that night to conduct a scheduled evaluation of Bell, as stipulated in the City Manager’s employment contract. Bell submitted his resignation at the meeting.
The Record attempted to reach Bell last week by phone and email, but he has not responded. Mayor Jan Dockery declined to comment on Bell’s resignation.
At their last regular meeting on Aug. 14, the Council discussed the evaluation, which was to include written feedback from the City’s department heads. Each of the Council members were also asked to provide written feedback about Bell.
The Council was supposed to review all of that information at their meeting last Monday.
The Council will hold its regular meeting this Monday, Aug. 28. The agenda for that meeting included an item to appoint an interim city manager.
The City of La Grange hired Bell back in March after a long search.
He was not the City Council’s first choice. The City Council negotiated with two other candidates they interviewed but failed to reach an employment contract with either one.
Bell succeeded long-time City Manager Shawn Raborn, who retired last year after nearly 30 years of leading the City.