HAMLET — Matthew Christian won’t have far to move for his next job.
Christian, the current town manager of Mount Gilead in Montgomery County, will be the new city manager from Hamlet.
Mayor Bill Bayless said Christian will start on July 6 and will be paid $80,000 per year.
Christian was one of three candidates interviewed for the job.
According to his LinkedIn page, Christian has a bachelor’s degree in political science, town administration and city council management as well as a Master of Public Administration degree, both from Appalachian State University.
He has been the manager of Mount Gilead since September of 2016. Before that, Christian was town planner in Knightdale and a town management intern in Weaverville.
Bill Zell, former manager of Aberdeen, has been holding down the fort for nearly month as Hamlet’s interim manager.
Former City Manager Jonathan Blanton left to become the first manager for the town of Ranlo in Gaston County.
Blanton, who was hired in January of 2017, served as Hamlet’s manager for the better part of three years.
He announced his resignation in 2019 to take a job at UNC Charlotte as director of business affairs and finance where he was to oversee an $18 million budget, as well as personnel and business operations for the University’s Graduate School.
However, after staying on as interim manager, he was re-hired in June at $90,000 per year.
