Murfreesboro, TN - The Murfreesboro City Council voted Friday, May 10, 2024, to begin contract negotiations with Assistant City Manager Darren Gore to become Murfreesboro’s next City Manager.

The Council decision followed a morning of interviews with Gore and Assistant City Manager Sam Huddleston. Both internal candidates are engineers and have served the City for most of their careers.

“We are fortunate and blessed to have two very qualified and competent internal candidates for the critical position of City Manager,” said Mayor Shane McFarland. “In my opinion, Darren is the right fit and has the vision to manage the City at this time in our history.”

Gore, a licensed professional engineer, first began working for the City in 2005 and has served as the Director of Murfreesboro Water Resources since 2012. Gore holds a bachelor's degree and master’s in engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta.

McFarland praised the process coordinated by the City’s Human Resources Department, which allowed internal candidates the opportunity to present their qualifications to an open and transparent City Manager selection process by the Council.

On April 11, 2024, current City Manager Craig Tindall publicly informed the City Council of his intention to step away from duties as City Manager to transition to Special Counsel with roles related to the Murfreesboro Airport, the Community Investment Trust, the Solid Waste Authority and Sports Authority. The role change under an amended contract agreement is effective July 2, 2024. The Council officially named Tindall as City Manager in June 2018 after serving as City Attorney.