Charlottesville City Council appoints new interim city manager

The Charlottesville City Council has selected Michael C. Rogers to be interim city manager, effective Jan. 31.

The City Council approved Rogers’ appointment and contract at a Tuesday committee meeting. His contract is for a six-month period, unless terminated earlier, such as when the city hires a permanent city manager.

The City Council engaged Rogers through a contract with The Robert Bobb Group (RBG), a global, minority-owned consultancy, serving municipal, state and territorial governments.

“We are confident Michael will be able to swiftly step into this role and provide effective and purposeful leadership for the city,” said Mayor Lloyd Snook. “Michael’s broad and deep experience in local government operations will guide city staff and enhance the partnership between the city manager and the City Council while we recruit a permanent city manager.”

Rogers has served as city administrator of the District of Columbia and executive director of the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments, the regional planning agency reporting to a regional board of elected officials. He also has acted as chief operating officer and chief financial officer of the City of Petersburg. He has held senior leadership positions with private and nonprofit regional health companies.

“Based on what we have already discovered, we are quite confident the city will be successful in its recruitment process for a permanent city manager, given the leadership of the City Council, dedication of the staff, and the commitment of the citizenry to make Charlottesville the best it can be,” said Robert C. Bobb, CEO and president of RBG.

Rogers’ other key engagements include his appointment as director of the Mayor’s Office of Contracts and chief procurement officer for City of New York; appointment as national director of the Minority Business Development Agency in the U.S. Department of Commerce and director of the Mayor’s Office of Contracts and city chief procurement officer for the District of Columbia.

Rogers is a longtime member of the International City County Management Association, the National Forum for Black Public Administrators and the National Academy of Public Administration (NAPA).

“I look forward to working with the mayor, the City Council, city staff, and community members over the coming months to ensure the smooth operation of government as the city recruits the next city manager,” said Rogers. “There are many important projects that must be completed in the near-term. It is critical that work on these key projects is not delayed during the transition.”