City Manager Darren Gore has approved the appointment of Assistant Murfreesboro Water Resources Director Valerie Smith to the position of director of the Murfreesboro Water Resources Department (MWRD), effective September 8, 2024. Smith will replace Gore, who became City Manager on July 2, 2024. This personnel change comes as the department plans to relocate its administrative, customer service, and engineering offices from Broad Street near City Hall to 316 Robert Rose in December 2024.
Valerie Smith graduated from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, with a Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering. She began her career with the MWRD in November 1998 as an Engineer in Training, received her State of Tennessee Professional Engineers license in July 2001, and was reclassified as an Engineer in September 2002. Smith was promoted to Engineering Manager in July 2011 and to Assistant Director of Engineering & Compliance in July 2013. Her promotion to director of Water Resources will be effective September 8, 2024.
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In 1999, the Water Resources Department acquired the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) Review Authority, allowing for in-house approval of any water, sewer, or repurified water main extensions for development. Under Smith’s oversight, Water Resources approved 1,700 main line extensions. As Engineering Manager and Assistant Director, Smith managed the Sanitary Sewer Flow Monitoring and Sewer Rehabilitation programs, spending $15.2 million through 2021 and an additional $16.9 million under contract for sewer infrastructure rehabilitation. This work has been crucial in reducing infiltration and inflow, as well as managing sewer inflows at the Water Resources Recovery Facility (WRRF) amid significant growth in Murfreesboro.
With the promotion of Smith to director, WRRF Plant Manager John Strickland has been promoted to Effective Utility Management (EUM) Coordinator. In this role, Strickland will initiate, monitor, and measure MWRD performance in accordance with effective utility management attributes and serve as a technical resource in water and wastewater treatment operations, process evaluation, and data management. Strickland joined the City Water Resources Department as a Plant Operator in January 1993 and has held various positions, including Master Plant Operator I, Superintendent of the Wastewater Treatment Plant, and Plant Manager of the WRRF. His promotion to EUM Coordinator will be effective September 8, 2024. Strickland holds a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt from Georgia Institute of Technology, a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in Computer Information Systems from Middle Tennessee State University, and a Post Graduate Public Leadership Credential in Public Administration from Harvard Kennedy School.
The WRRF, located at 2032 Blanton Drive and formerly known as the Sinking Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant, underwent a major expansion in 2017, increasing its capacity by 50 percent from 16 million to 24 million gallons per day. The plant has received several accolades, including The William Hunter Owen Award in 2014 and the national Utility of the Future Today award in 2016. It also received the Kentucky-Tennessee Operational Excellence Award eleven consecutive years during Strickland’s tenure.
With Strickland’s promotion, MWRD will advertise the vacant WRRF Plant Manager position both internally and externally. For more information on the Murfreesboro Water Resources Department, visit https://www.murfreesborotn.gov/2635/Water-Resources or call 615-848-3209. For City News online, visit www.Murfreesborotn.gov.
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Murfreesboro Opens FY25-26 Charitable Grant Applications
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