Radley Williams to juggle both roles temporarily until moving into new role
By Teresa Sargeant
Reporter
City parks and recreation director Radley Williams has been promoted to interim city administrator effective immediately, and for the time being will juggle both positions until he moves into his new role.
Williams was hired as the parks and recreation director in 2022. He has worked in government for over 20 years. Prior to his employment at Apopka, he was the city of Lake Mary assistant parks and recreation director from 2020 to 2022.
“Effective immediately, I have promoted Radley Williams to the Interim City Administrator,” Mayor Bryan Nelson wrote in an April 17 email to city department heads and city attorney Cliff Shepard. “His effective leadership at the Parks and Rec level along with his great working relationship with the other Department Heads and City Council makes Radley a great choice. It is especially important as we go into the 2025-26 budget season to have someone in the City Administration position.”
Williams will split his work schedule into two sections to focus on each position. As parks and recreation director, Williams will work from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. at the Northwest Recreation Complex, then from 12:30 to 5 p.m. at City Hall to focus on his interim city administrator duties, according to Nelson’s email.
As he brings other parks and recreation colleagues into management positions, his hours as interim city administrator will increase until he transitioned full-time into his new position.
“Please help me welcome Radley to his new role and I thank you in advance for your cooperation as we look forward to a smooth transition,” Nelson wrote in the email.
Williams is succeeding Jacob Smith, whom Nelson had terminated last month due to a communication breakdown between the two. The breakdown culminated in Smith deleting emails from the governor’s office and the Florida League of Cities, according to information from the city of Apopka information technology department. In the emails, the state Department of Government Efficiency was requesting municipalities to send reviews of their financial solvency for an April 8 deadline.
The Apopka Chief is an award-winning weekly newspaper serving the greater Apopka area in Central Florida since 1923.
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