Macon County Manager Derek Roland resigned at the start of last night’s county commission meeting.
“After much reflection and with a heavy heart, I will announce my intent to step down as Macon County manager. This decision has not been easy,” Roland said at Tuesday’s meeting.
“It's been an honor and a privilege to work alongside some of the most talented, driven and compassionate individuals I have ever known in the Macon County employees.”
Previously the county’s planner, Roland has served as county manager for nearly 11 years as the county has grown.
Roland said he is leaving to pursue another career opportunity.
But Roland just last year clashed with commissioners during discussions about ARPA funding.
During a November meeting, the squabble over how and whether to fund county employee retention pay led to Commissioner John Shearl calling for Roland’s resignation.
The dispute was over Shearl saying Roland had made a remark that Macon County was overstaffed. Roland, in the meeting, denied saying the remark, prompting Shearl to accuse Roland of saying the commissioner was lying.
“You have called me a liar four times in open session, so tonight, I ask for your resignation,” Shearl said. Roland did not specifically call Shearl a liar.
He responded to the commissioner, “If you don’t like the job I’m doing, or you think that poorly of who I am, or you question my character and you can get two more commissioners to vote with you, you can have my resignation.”
No one else on the board spoke up and the meeting moved forward. Roland continued to work with commissioners and through a bumpy 2025 budget process which was approved in June including last minute adjustments.
“The fiscal year 25 recommended budget is probably the most important to me because it has been a decade in the making,” Roland said, according to the Smoky Mountain News.
After Roland’s public resignation announcement, commissioners voted to continue the Tuesday night meeting. T
he discussion, they said, would be reopened on Sept. 17. Members will discuss hiring a new county manager or finding an interim county manager.
Former Macon County Sheriff Robert Holland posted on his personal Facebook page after the meeting in support of Roland and thanked him for his service.
“Macon County lost one of the very best county managers in the state tonight. For years, other counties have tried to hire him but his dedication and commitment was to this county where he was born and raised and where he is raising his children and he never seemed to consider leaving,” Holland wrote.
“I’ve watched him treated so incredibly bad by some Commissioners during public meetings over the last couple of years, but through it all he’s remained the true professional he is. He will be replaced… no doubt… but this is a huge loss and filling those shoes is going to be a big task.”
Roland gave his 30-day notice. He said his last county meeting will be Oct. 8 when he would give a statement thanking the many people with whom he worked.
On Tuesday, Shearl floated a question in the meeting as to whether the commission even needs to hire a new manager.
“Are all 100 counties in North Carolina manager/commission forms of government or are there commission [only] counties?” Shearl asked.
Macon County Eric Ridenour explained that all 100 counties have a county manager.
“I think Jackson (County) was one of the very last ones to go where the chairman ended up being the county manager and I remember when they finally made the step they were one of the last three. That was a while ago,” Ridenour said.
