Marion hires city administrator

After nearly 17 months, Marion will have more than an interim city administrator starting this summer.

City council members voted 5-0 Wednesday to hire Brian Wells to fill Marion’s city administrator position, vacated in January, 2024, by Brogan Jones.

Retired Emporia city manager Mark McAnarney has been filling in as interim administrator since then.

Wells, who is expected to start in mid-June, will move to Marion from Collier County, Florida, which includes Naples. He has been division director for public transit and neighborhood enhancement there.

Before that, Wells worked for 11 years in public transportation at Estes Park, Colorado, and Rocky Mountain National Park.

He was born in Emporia and raised in Olathe. Both he and his wife have family in Kansas.

Wells has a master’s degree in public administration and a post-baccalaureate certificate in homeland security. His bachelor’s degree in business administration is from Emporia State University.

More information about him will appear in next week’s Marion County Record.