Mayor Rick Sollars has appointed Robert Dickerson as the City of Taylor’s new Chief of Staff. Dickerson, 51, replaces Amanda Banas, who left the City for personal reasons.
“Amanda will be missed – she was a pleasure to work with and a tremendous asset to our city,” Mayor Sollars said. “But we’re very fortunate to have recruited and landed Robert Dickerson to step into the role. I feel that he can hit the road running based on his experience and success across the board in municipal government and organizational administration.”
Prior to coming to Taylor, Dickerson was the Chief of Staff in neighboring Romulus under Mayor LeRoy Burcroff.
Burcroff and Sollars’ paths are similar: Each had success in private business and are long time residents and are active in their respective communities. Each spent multiple terms serving as city council members.
Dickerson was one of Burcroff’s key initial appointees, serving a dual role as both Chief of Staff and Human Resources Director.
Mayor Sollars looks for Dickerson to repeat the success he has had in Romulus, and elsewhere, here in Taylor. In Romulus, the administration focused on improving planning and economic development with a “business-friendly” approach as well as improving customer and city services for all residents, and providing employees and departments with structured leadership, sound oversight, and harmonious labor relations.
While serving as the Chief of Staff in Romulus, Dickerson oversaw and shared in the following accomplishments:
The city’s General Fund/Fund Balance increased from a 9 percent Fund Balance in 2012 to over 20 percent Fund Balance for the current FY ending June 30, 2016
The city’s long-term retiree health care legacy costs were reduced by over $25 million by offering active employees an incentive program to voluntarily switch into a less costly retiree health care savings plan
Negotiated long term collective bargaining agreements with the Teamsters and AFSCME Unions
The city’s bond rating was just upgraded last month to an A+ rating
Some existing retiree health care plans were amended, without cutting any benefits, saving the city hundreds of thousands of dollars the past two years
Authored and ultimately awarded over $500,000 in new grants and other non-traditional funding sources for park improvements, community and employee programs, and economic development
Renovated and reopened four neighborhood parks throughout the city that had been closed for several years
Constructed and opened two brand new dog parks in the city
Enhanced employee development and training, through mandatory and professionally implemented customer service and communication training, for all employees
Through savings within the police budget, new police body cameras have been approved and are in the purchasing process, making Romulus one of the few police departments in the state that will soon require body cameras be worn on all uniformed officers
Taylor was in much more difficult financial waters when Mayor Sollars took over in November 2013. But it has gone from a $5 million deficit and a state-mandated Deficit Elimination Plan to now, a city with two consecutive balanced budgets and a modest fund balance.
Dickerson is a retired Wayne County Sheriff’s Office Operation’s Chief under the former Sheriff Warren C. Evans, and from September of 2011 to March of 2013, Dickerson served as the Romulus Police Chief and Public Safety Director.
Prior to resigning his position in March of 2013, he was credited with administrating and leading the Romulus Police Department out of some turbulent times.
Dickerson retired from the Sheriff’s Department in December 2008 as Chief of Administrative Operations. From 2005-08, he oversaw the business side of the Sheriff’s Department, including finance, labor relations, training, police academy, police reserves, police discipline, special projects, and community relations. He ranked fourth in administrative command and had 1,400 staffers serving under him.
During his career, he also worked on numerous assignments and task forces, including a 10-year assignment to a federal drug enforcement unit.
Dickerson, who attended Schoolcraft College and Eastern Michigan University, earned a degree in Criminal Justice and is a graduate of the FBI National Academy in Quantico, Va. He also attended a one-year Fellowship at Michigan State University that focused on Leadership.
In both 2005 and in 2008, he was one of the recipients of the Wayne County Employee of the Year Award for leading a Sheriff’s Department rescue team down to in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, spending two weeks there assisting with search and rescue missions and for developing and instituting the creative and cost savings program, “Sheriff’s Return to Work Program” which required numerous employees who had been off work on long term duty and non duty medical leaves to return to work in light duty capacities, resulting in huge savings in overall overtime costs with increased productivity.
“I have been very fortunate to have worked alongside and learn from outstanding and successful leaders such as Warren Evans and LeRoy Burcroff.” said Dickerson, “and having the opportunity to work for and learn from another successful and very respected leader like Mayor Rick Sollars, in an outstanding and rapidly growing community like Taylor, made the decision to accept the new position much easier.”