Find out what's happening in Oak Ridge from the city manager

City Manager Randy Hemann will speak on " What's Happening in the City of Oak Ridge" at the Oct. 9 meeting of Altrusa International of Oak Ridge.

The in-person Altrusa meeting will begin at 11:30 a.m. at the Doubletree Hotel by Hilton, 215 S. Illinois Ave., with a time to socialize, according to a news release. A buffet opens at 11:45 a.m. (If desired, the buffet cost is $17.50, cash or check only). A short business meeting will begin at noon and the program will follow. Reservations should be made by sending an email to: altrusareservations@gmail.com by noon, Monday, Oct. 7. The public is invited to attend, but please make a reservation whether or not you intend to eat.

Hemann has been city manager since Nov. 1, 2023. He came to Oak Ridge with 10 years of city management experience in North Carolina, where he was town manager of Mooresville for four years. There he helped the community grow and invest in services including a new police headquarters, a new fire station, a new park, library branch and the largest skatepark in the Southeast.

As an assistant manager in High Point for four years he helped construct a $36 million baseball stadium that spurred downtown growth. He also helped streamline the building inspections process and increased community code enforcement to help clean up the community.

Prior to that he was city manager in Oxford for two years following a 27-year career in the field of downtown development in Salisbury, Kinston and Benson, North Carolina. In Salisbury, he was part of two downtown master plans that resulted in over $70 million in investment and the designation as one of 10 Great Neighborhoods in the U.S. by the American Planning Association.

Hemann capped off his downtown development presenting Salisbury’s success story to 1,200 attendees at the 2012 National Main Street Conference.

He is a native of Huntington, West Virginia. He was awarded a B.A. in political science at Marshall University and holds a Master of Public Administration degree from East Carolina University. He has been married for 28 years to his wife, Paula. He has a 24-year-old son and three grandchildren.

Altrusa International is a service organization comprised of community members focusing on leadership, partnership and service with an emphasis on literacy and education.

This article originally appeared on Oakridger: Find out what's happening in Oak Ridge from the city manager