City Manager Debra Campbell announces retirement

Posted on by Brionna Dallara
PENDING RETIREMENT: City Manager Debra Campbell will retire in December. She has held the post since 2018. Photo courtesy of the City of Asheville

Asheville City Manager Debra Campbell formally announced her retirement to Mayor Esther Manheimer and City Council members in a Feb. 12 letter.

Campbell’s last day will be Friday, Dec. 5.

The letter came a day before Council’s annual retreat, where city staff and Council go over strategic priorities that guide budget, plans and policies for the year. While there was no discussion about Campbell’s departure during the retreat, there was a slide on the Budget Update and Outlook presentation that listed “City Manager recruitment” as a priority for fiscal year 2025.

Campbell’s initial five-year contract concluded in December 2023 and was automatically renewed for two years. Her latest contract included another two-year renewal option at the end of this year.

In an email to Xpress, Manheimer praised Campbell’s contributions as city manager. “One of her greatest strengths is her unwavering commitment to supporting her staff — a quality that has been invaluable as nearly 1,200 city employees have worked tirelessly through Tropical Storm Helene to bring our city from the brink to full recovery,” Manheimer wrote.

“I want to assure you that my commitment to the City of Asheville remains steadfast,” wrote Campbell in her letter to Council. “And while there is much work to be done, particularly concerning the recovery efforts following Tropical Storm Helene, I am fully dedicated and committed to leading these efforts for the remainder of my tenure. My focus will be on ensuring that the initial phase of our recovery is robust and solid groundwork is established.”

In the letter’s closing, Campbell noted her gratitude for the opportunity to serve as city manager, a post she assumed in 2018.

This story was supported by the Fund for Investigative Reporting and Editing. 

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One thought on “City Manager Debra Campbell announces retirement”

  1. Soothsayer

    Excited to hear this news. The missing in action on so many occasions including the south Asheville water crisis pre-Helene should have resulted in her dismissal or resignation. This is a very highly paid job for this area that should warrant one hundred percent attention during any outage. Obviously a great deal of leeway was granted to her during Helene due to scale.

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