Avula appoints Atlanta official as Richmond’s next CAO

Odie Donald II — the current chief of staff to Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens — has been appointed to serve as the city of Richmond’s next chief administrative officer, Richmond Mayor Danny Avula announced Friday.

Before his current role in Atlanta, Donald served for about 16 months as the city/county administrator for the combined government of the city of Augusta and Richmond County in Georgia. 

Donald also served as the first city manager for Georgia’s newly formed city of South Fulton, which was incorporated in 2017.

A native of the Atlanta area, Donald also spent time in the District of Columbia, previously serving as director of D.C.’s Department of Employment Services and executive director of its Workforce Investment Council.

"I’m deeply honored by Mayor Danny Avula’s trust in me to serve the people of Richmond as Chief Administrative Officer," Donald said in a city news release. "Throughout my career, I’ve been passionate about building strong, effective teams that truly deliver for residents—from streamlining services and improving infrastructure to fostering economic development that benefits everyone."

Standing 6-foot-8, Donald played Division I basketball in college at the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga and Georgia State University. Knee injuries ended his playing career, according to an article published by Georgia State, where he went on to earn a bachelor’s degree in history in 2003 and a master of business administration degree in 2012.

“I was incredibly drawn to Odie’s depth of operational experience in both council-manager systems and strong-mayor systems and believe this will be an asset to us,” Avula said in an email sent to City Council members. “I have found him to be humble and collaborative in his leadership style."

The annual salary proposed for Donald is $365,000, according to Avula’s email. His proposed start date is July 9.

"Odie Donald is a talented and experienced public administrator with a compelling life story that speaks to Richmond’s highest aspirations," Avula said in a news release. "He believes in effective and responsible public management, and in the necessity of local government to uplift and transform lives."

Donald will fill one of the most influential roles in Richmond’s government, working under Avula to oversee the daily operations of a city government with more than 4,000 employees and a general fund budget of more than $1 billion. 

“The ideal is that you have a mayor who articulates a clear vision and policy direction for the city and then the CAO can supervise the details and implementation of that vision,” the city said in an online post explaining the relationship between the CAO and the mayor.

The City Council has to approve Donald’s appointment and the terms of his contract. That vote is expected to occur Monday night at the council’s next meeting.

"Richmond has incredible potential, and I’m excited to work alongside the talented City staff and dynamic City Council to, together, build a strong foundation for thriving neighborhoods, an efficient City Hall, and a city where every resident has the opportunity to succeed," Donald said.

The CAO position is arguably the most pivotal job Avula has filled since taking office in January. On the campaign trail last year, Avula promised to bring in a new CAO, but accomplishing that task has taken a little longer than the mayor anticipated. Assisting Avula in the CAO search were recruiting firm POLIHIRE and The Robert Bobb Group, a consulting shop run by former Richmond city manager Robert Bobb.

"There was enormous national interest in the Chief Administrative Officer position which speaks to the incredible dynamism and appeal of the city and its future,” Bobb said in the city release.

Lincoln Saunders, who served in the position under former Mayor Levar Stoney, left the job on Dec. 31 as the Stoney administration handed power to the Avula administration. Top finance official Sabrina Joy-Hogg has been handling interim CAO duties since then, but her time with the city ended Friday as she left for a similar job in Newport News.

Sharon Ebert, the city's deputy administrator for economic development, will handle the CAO duties until Donald joins the city.

Two weeks ago, the Avula administration committed to announcing a CAO hire on Friday. Officials announced the hire Friday evening via press release, without holding a news conference.

Though much of the CAO’s work happens behind the scenes, they also play a public-facing role at City Council meetings, answering questions from the legislative body and expressing the administration’s views on policy.

In his new role, Donald will also be an integral part of finding solutions to City Hall’s most pressing challenges, such as modernizing billing and finance and restabilizing the city’s beleaguered water treatment plant.

A biography on Atlanta’s website says Donald delivered on several key economic development initiatives during his time in Augusta, including adoption of several special-purpose taxes and streamlining the plan review process.

"During his tenure, Donald also launched key initiatives highlighted by a pilot body camera program, a $15 an hour minimum wage for city employees, a countywide non-discrimination ordinance and delivery of the first comprehensive blight ordinance in Augusta’s history," his Atlanta bio says.

Though Donald has moved from job to job fairly quickly over the last decade, he appears to have received largely positive reviews from other officials in the places he’s worked. Rapid turnover in Richmond’s CAO job has been a cause for concern among some city leaders, who feel it creates a lack of stability and can impede long-term planning.

Richmond had three different CAOs during Stoney’s eight years as mayor. 

Former Mayor Dwight Jones hired Selena Cuffee-Glenn as CAO in 2015, and she remained in the job after Stoney took office. She lasted until 2019, when a nepotism investigation revealed several of her relatives had been hired to city jobs. Former finance administrator Lenora Reid, who had worked with Cuffee-Glenn in Suffolk, then took over as CAO. However, medical issues caused her to step aside in 2020. That led Saunders — Stoney’s former chief of staff — to assume the CAO role for the rest of Stoney’s mayoralty.

Avula has said he too hopes to be mayor for eight years instead of serving a single four-year term. That means Donald could have a potentially long run as City Hall’s top administrator, depending on how things work out when he starts.

Contact Reporter Graham Moomaw at gmoomaw@richmonder.org