July 12, 2023 – Charlottesville Mayor J. Lloyd Snook announced the selection Samuel Sanders, Jr. as the new City Manager on this Wednesday. Sanders has officially been appointed by Charlottesville City Council (2022-2023) and his contract approved for his first day in the role on August 1. [3] The Council had been advertising the position since March. According to Mayor Lloyd Snook, the city received 20 qualified applicants and has narrowed them to three, all of whom have at least two decades experience in municipal leadership. [4]
September 21, 2023 – City Manager Saunders issued a directive to lift the closing time in Market Street Park. [5] A homeless encampment continued to increase in size at Market Street Park after closing hours were lifted.
City Manager Sanders issued a directive to remove the closing time at Market Street Park after hearing a complaint of a police officer allegedly kicking two homeless people to wake them up after hours. That decision followed an alleged altercation between police and a man who refused to leave the park after hours. The City Manger says he and the police department are looking into what happened. In the meantime, Sanders says the unhoused are allowed to stay in the park overnight. Sanders says he will have a plan to present councilors at their next meeting on October 2nd. [6]
Sanders was born in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. He moved around a lot as a child. [7]
From July 2021 to July 31, 2023, Sanders has served as Deputy City Manager of Operations for the City of Charlottesville, after serving most recently as the Executive Director of Baton Rouge, Louisiana's Mid City Redevelopment Alliance - a non-profit which "develops and promotes the growth of Mid City Baton Rouge by attracting new and retaining current residents and businesses." [8]
Principal/Consultant Community Revitalization Strategies
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