By Judy Truesdell
W
Renae Ollie
hen former Wylie City Manager Mindy Manson retired last spring, she did so with confidence that the City of Wylie would continue to thrive under the creative leadership of three unique professionals, Chris Holsted, Renae Ollie, and Brent Parker. Their diverse backgrounds, education, and experience, together with a shared emotional connection to the city, complement each other and have created a dynamic leadership team.
City Manager Chris Holsted Chris Holsted graduated from the University of Arkansas in 1994 with a degree in mechanical engineering. He began his professional life as an HVAC design technician with Cromwell Architects and Engineers in Little Rock. A job with Dallas engineering firm The Hogan Corporation brought him to Texas, first as an engineer in training, then project manager, and finally vice president. It was through Hogan that he became known to the Wylie community; he worked on several challenging engineering projects here, including the reconstruction of Cooper Drive. “This project was done in 1995, when it seemed like you left the Metroplex when driving east into Wylie,” he recalled, adding that FM 544 and SH 78 were two-lane asphalt roadways. He also designed a sewer line relocation, crucial to allow the Kansas City Southern train tracks to be relocated around downtown to their current location west of SH 78. In order to meet the KCS deadline, that project was designed in two days, over a weekend. “Maybe the one that had the biggest effect was the realignment of Country Club between FM 544 and Brown Street. When we presented the idea, we received com-
Chris Holsted
Photos by Craig Kelly
Wylie Leadership Trio Brings Varied Strengths, Experience to New Roles
Brent Parker
ments like ‘That will never happen,’ but we knew the configuration at the time would not be efficient long term with the projected growth.” Those new to the community may not know that Country Club originally ran northeast at a 45-degree angle; its relocation and straightening increased traffic capacity at the FM 544/ Country Club intersection, crucial to the Municipal Complex construction. In 1998, Chris was offered the position of acting city engineer, and he became the official city engineer in 2000. He was named the assistant city manager when Jeff Butters retired in 2016. Mindy cited his commitment to public service and proven leadership as key to that appointment, and in 2019 when she announced her own plans to retire, she recommended Chris to the Wylie City Council as her replacement, and they approved the appointment. “I was honored to be offered the position because I respect Mindy and appreciated her work ethic,” he said. “We had discussed my goal, which was to move into a management role, and I was pleased she and the council had confidence in my ability to take the reins last May.” Although he was committed to continuing the quality leadership Mindy had provided, he also brought some new ideas to the table. Chief among them was the addition of a second assistant city manager, necessary to continue providing a high level of customer service to the city’s growing population. The City Council approved the promotion of Fire Chief Brent Parker and Director of Development Services Renae Ollie to assistant city manager, a step that, through realignment of other positions, was possible at no impact to the budget.
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24 • The CONNECTION • February/March 2020
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