TALLADEGA — The city has now officially filled two crucial positions in the recently created Community Development Department.Chris Stone took over as the director of the new department Monday. He earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in political science at Jacksonville State University, then spent the next three years working for Lower Chattahootchie Regional Development Center in Columbus, Ga.
Stone said the center served much the same function as the East Alabama Regional Planning Commission in Anniston.
He spent the last four years as a planner for the city of Huntsville. His wife is a teacher in Huntsville, but will be moving to Talladega soon with their 8-month old daughter.
Since arriving in Talladega, Stone has spent most of his time at city hall settling into his new office (previously the finance director’s office) and “reviewing the city’s land use policies, zoning ordinance and map, subdivision regulations, the comprehensive plan. The city’s comprehensive plan is exceptionally well written, by the way. And I’ve also been looking at the permitting process and some economic development initiatives, seeing what opportunities are out there. It’s a lot to get a handle on, but things are going well so far.”
The other new employee at city hall is Michael Speciale, an economic development specialist who will be working under Stone. He earned degrees in political science and economics at North Carolina Agricultural/Technical State University. He earned a graduate level degree in public administration and community planning from Auburn University. He spent one year working as a planner in Opelika.
“We’re looking at the community as a whole, trying to elevate Talladega, getting processes in place that will help the city grow. We want the process to be more streamlined, and work more efficiently. But right now, the primary goal is to figure out what the long-term goals will be. We’re developing those as we speak.”
In addition to the areas Stone and Speciale mentioned, the Community Development Department will also oversee code enforcement and building inspection, and will work closely with the city’s Planning and Zoning Board, Variance Board and Historic Preservation Commission.
