JR Harmon will take up his new role at the end of July
At the end of this month, Ocean City Police Captain Elton “JR” Harmon will put away his badge and hang up his law enforcement gear after more than two decades with the department to become City Manager Terry’s number two McGean.
The deputy city manager position is a new position McGean added to the city’s payroll shortly after he was hired in January as part of a newly developed reporting scheme to help distribute administrative duties and responsibilities.
The effort to hire the new staff member began with a vetting process that involved advertising the position internally and forming a committee that interviewed five candidates.
McGean said in a Tuesday business session that Harmon’s name was high on the list as the best candidate for the job, and asked board members to approve the nomination.
Harmon started working for the city in 1997 as a police officer and rose through the ranks. As administrative captain, he managed the city’s largest budget and managed both civil and sworn officers, McGean said. Harmon also has what McGean described as “extensive experience” as a special events and special projects lieutenant.
Before becoming a police officer, Harmon coached college football, which McGean says shows another layer of leadership ability. Harmon also completed a feasibility study for a sports complex while in college.
“It’s very timely in what we’re doing,” McGean said of the study.
McGean also said he worked closely with Harmon on many projects during his more than 30-year tenure as a municipal engineer.
“The most important thing, and what I kept coming back to again and again… was [Harmon’s] successful experience as a patrol captain, during arguably some of the toughest times in Ocean City history,” McGean said. “His leadership in fighting crime on the boardwalk and putting on the H2Oi event, I think, speaks for itself.”
Council members unanimously approved Harmon’s nomination for the position in a 4-0 vote on Tuesday, with councilors John Gehrig, Frank Knight and Lloyd Martin absent. McGean said Harmon would officially start his new position at the end of the month after retiring from the OCPD.
Mayor Rick Meehan called Harmon’s appointment “excellent” and praised McGean for the process that led to his hiring.
The idea for the position came about shortly after McGean took over as city manager earlier this year. He began by directly supervising the city’s 16 department heads.
McGean pointed out at a meeting in April that the military recommends that top brass comfortably have six to seven direct reports, while the corporate world calls for up to 11. In the area of city managers, McGean said it’s typical to have between eight and 12 employees under the top position.
The new setup places five departments — recreation, risk, grants and special projects, IT, and community development — under Harmon’s responsibility as the new deputy city manager. McGean said he chose those departments carefully because he wanted to keep public safety, human resources, finance, public works and tourism under his wing.
McGean also said in April that he advertised the new position internally as a grade 130, which carries the same salary as a department head. In fiscal year 2023, just over $151,000 has been budgeted for the assistant general manager’s salary and benefits.
