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TALENT SEARCH EXTENDED City Hall is seeing an unprecedented number of changes this year among its top managers. Photo by Norman Schimmel CITY ALLOWING ITSELF MORE TIME TO FIND A NEW FINANCE DIRECTOR AND NEW UTILITIES DIRECTOR, WITH YET A THIRD DEPARTMENT CHIEF POSITION COMING OPEN SOON By Stan Zimmerman City Editor It has been a year of changes for the City of Sarasota, changes at the top of the bureaucra- cy. Two of those transitions already have been completed, with a new city manager and new police chief named. Three more are coming. On Wednesday, Oct. 24, Human Resources Di- rector Kurt Hoverter confirmed he is extend- ing the search time for a new finance director and a new utilities director. While he has received applications for both positions, he recently learned the two state associations representing these types of of- ficials will be meeting in Sarasota in the very near future. Both men leaving – Finance Di- rector Chris Lyons and Utilities Director Bill Hallisey – were presidents of their respective professional associations in the past. "We don't want to miss an opportunity like this," said Hoverter. "It's a classic network outreach opportunity. It was fortuitous." Both Hallisey and Lyons are veterans of a quarter-century of civic service, and each has agreed to continue to serve until his replace- ment is secured.