Fort Smith Board of Directors votes 4-3 to hire Acting City Administrator Jeff Dingman for top job | Arkansas Democrat Gazette

Fort Smith’s Board of Directors voted 4-3 to hire Jeff Dingman as the next city administrator, selecting him over Robert Sivick of Dalton, Georgia. The decision followed about an hour in executive session after the board’s Tuesday regular meeting, according to the report. Directors Andre Good, Lee Kemp, Kevin Settle and Neal Martin backed Dingman, while George Catsavis, Christina Catsavis and Jarred Rego opposed it. Christina Catsavis said in a text message after the vote that her decision was not a judgment of Dingman personally. Dingman has served as acting city administrator since December 2024, after Carl Geffken was ousted, and Fort Smith has been without a permanent administrator for about 20 months.