From Staff Reports 

Debra Campbell, assistant city manager for Charlotte, was named Asheville’s new city manager after a unanimous vote Oct. 17 by Asheville City Council .

During the vote to hire Campbell, several council members voiced their enthusiasm for her.

Campbell, who will be the first African-American and the first woman to serve as Asheville’s city manager, will start the job Dec. 3.

After the vote, she told council and the attendees who filled the council chamber for the specially called meeting that she was “blessed, honored and excited” to be named to what she called a “coveted position,” the Asheville Citizen Times reported.

After thanking council and colleagues in Charlotte, Campbell said she was pleased to be through the selection phase and now was ready to tackle “Phase II,” which, the ACT reported, “meant convincing the council to keep her. That would mean tackling the city’s very real problems, she said.”

Campbell asserted, “Asheville has a lot of positive momentum to build on, but there’s a lot of heavy lifting ahead of us to address social, economic, environmental and trust issues. I am anxious to get started.”