Franklin Town Council Appoints Sarah Bishop Interim Town Manager

The Franklin Town Council convened a special called meeting on the evening of October 12, 2026. After calling the meeting to order, the council entertained and approved a motion to excuse Councilman Higdon, who was unable to attend because of work obligations. With no members of the public requesting to speak, the body turned to its sole item of business: the appointment of an interim town manager.

Town attorney John Henning provided the procedural and legal background. He explained that the town operates under the council-manager form of government adopted years earlier pursuant to North Carolina General Statute provisions. Under that framework, the council must appoint a qualified person to exercise the powers and duties of town manager whenever a vacancy exists. Henning characterized the separation of longtime manager Amy Owens (who had served approximately five years) as an amicable parting of the ways, consistent with the town’s earlier public statement. He noted that, while a sitting manager may designate an acting manager during temporary absences, a true vacancy triggers the council’s duty to name an interim.

The resolution before the council named Sarah Bishop, the current finance officer and assistant town manager, as interim town manager. Henning stated that she is fully qualified and may lawfully hold both the interim-manager and finance-officer positions simultaneously, though he observed that dual occupancy is not an ideal long-term arrangement and will likely warrant future attention. The resolution itself contains five sections: it makes the appointment effective immediately and continuing until a permanent manager is named or the resolution is amended; it delegates to the interim manager the same authorities previously granted the town manager (including entering contracts under $30,000, day-to-day property management and limited leasing or surplus-property disposal, adoption of certain non-ordinance policies required by law, tax releases or refunds under $100, review and release of closed-session minutes when appropriate, and grant applications with associated obligations within budget limits); it reaffirms compliance with the Local Government Budget and Fiscal Control Act and Local Government Commission rules; and it clarifies that the delegated authority is additive to any other legal or policy authority.

After the resolution was read into the record, a motion was offered to accept Ms. Owens’ separation, recognize the vacancy, and adopt the resolution appointing Sarah Bishop. The motion received a second and was opened for discussion. The mayor spoke at length, describing the departure as amicable and on good terms. He credited Owens with systematically improving previously informal processes and agreements, formalizing operations, and assembling what he called the best staff the town has ever had—work that has laid groundwork for future progress. Addressing public comments about transparency, he stated that the council had followed sound legal advice on personnel matters (which cannot be fully disclosed), but that, in hindsight, the timing and manner of releasing public information could have been handled differently; he accepted responsibility for that aspect. He concluded that the overall process complied with the law, that the town regretted Owens’ departure, and that it looked forward to the work ahead.

With no further discussion, the motion carried unanimously. A subsequent motion to adjourn also passed, and the meeting ended. The entire special session was brief, focused, and conducted in open session, with the formal resolution and statutory framework supplying the operative decisions. The following is reconstructed from the audio with the NCGS reference cleaned up. A copy was not provided.

RESOLUTION OF THE TOWN COUNCIL FOR THE TOWN OF FRANKLIN
APPOINTING AN INTERIM TOWN MANAGER

WHEREAS, at its regular meeting of March 3, 2008, the Town Council duly adopted an ordinance pursuant to North Carolina General Statute 160A-101 to adopt the council-manager form of government; and

WHEREAS, there is currently a vacancy in the position of Town Manager for the Town of Franklin, upon which condition North Carolina General Statute 160A-150 provides that the Town Council “shall designate a qualified person to exercise the powers and perform the duties of manager until the vacancy is filled”; and

WHEREAS, the Town Council finds that Sarah Bishop, who currently serves as the Town Finance Officer and Assistant Town Manager, is qualified to perform the duties of Town Manager;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Franklin Town Council as follows:

Section 1. Sarah Bishop is hereby appointed to the position of Interim Town Manager until such time as a permanent Town Manager shall be named by the Town Council.

Section 2. As Interim Town Manager, Sarah Bishop is hereby granted such responsibilities and authorities as are assigned and delegated to the position of Town Manager pursuant to any and all applicable laws and policies. The Town Council delegates authority to the Interim Town Manager as follows:

A. Contracts. The Interim Town Manager is authorized to enter into contracts of less than thirty thousand dollars ($30,000) on behalf of the Town Council and with the effect of binding the Town for any budget purpose, including without limitation construction or maintenance, utility installation, or professional services.

B. Property Management. The Interim Town Manager shall oversee the day-to-day management and maintenance of Town-owned real and personal property. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the Interim Town Manager is specifically authorized:

1. Pursuant to G.S. 160A-262(b), to lease or rent Town property that is not needed for current operations for terms of one year or less; and
2. Pursuant to G.S. Chapter 160A, Article 12, to declare Town-owned personal property surplus and dispose of it by sale or any other means in the Town Manager’s discretion, where any single item or group of similar items is worth less than thirty thousand dollars ($30,000).

C. Policies. The Interim Town Manager is hereby authorized to adopt such policies as are required by federal or state law and which are not required to be adopted as ordinances. By way of illustration, this shall include the Uniform Guidance policies required by federal regulation.

D. Tax Releases. The Interim Town Manager is authorized to release or refund taxes in the amount of less than one hundred dollars ($100) upon presentation of a valid defense pursuant to G.S. 105-381.

E. Closed Session Minutes. The Interim Town Manager shall review and approve closed session minutes of the Council in consultation with the Town Clerk and Town Attorney. When the purposes of the closed session will no longer be frustrated by the release of closed session minutes, the Interim Town Manager is authorized to add them to the Council’s public minutes.

F. Grant Applications. The Interim Town Manager is authorized to apply for grant funding from any source when the Interim Town Manager finds such funding to be in the best interest of the Town. The Interim Town Manager is further authorized to bind the Town to the performance of obligations required to secure such funding, including the payment of matching funds within budget limits.

Section 3. Any expenditure of Town funds in excess of budget amounts or requiring the Town to incur any financial obligation beyond the current budget year shall require specific authorization and/or appropriation by the Town Council. Otherwise, the Interim Town Manager shall report to the Town Council any acts taken pursuant to the authority granted herein at an appropriate time within the discretion of the Interim Town Manager, in no event later than the next regular Council meeting. The Interim Town Manager shall ensure the internal controls governing the management of funds remain in compliance with the requirements of the Local Government Budget and Fiscal Control Act, rules and regulations promulgated by the Local Government Commission, and any other applicable laws and regulations.

Section 4. The authority delegated by this Resolution shall be in addition to, rather than in substitution of, any authority granted to the Interim Town Manager pursuant to applicable law, ordinances, or policies previously adopted by the Council.

Section 5. The appointment of the Interim Town Manager and the delegation of authority granted hereby shall be effective immediately and shall continue in effect until it is amended by the Town Council.

ADOPTED at this special meeting of the Town Council this 12th day of October, 2026.