Hendersonville council accepts city manager's resignation, appoints Brian Polley effective Oct. 1

Hendersonville's City Council accepted the resignation of City Manager John Conant and voted to appoint Brian Polley as the city's next manager, with the appointment to take effect Oct. 1, 2026.

Councilor (mover) read the motion to accept Conant's resignation and to appoint Polley, saying, "I move that city council accept the resignation of John Conant and appoint Brian Polley as city manager, both to be effective 10/01/2026, and authorize the mayor to negotiate and enter into an appointment agreement with Mr. Polley on behalf of city council." The motion passed by voice vote.

The appointment follows a closed-session meeting held under North Carolina statutes addressing confidential personnel matters. The council authorized the mayor to finalize employment terms and directed staff to proceed with transition steps so the new manager can assume duties on the stated effective date.

The council did not provide additional details in open session about the terms of the appointment or Conant's departure beyond accepting the resignation and setting an effective transition date.