
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, April 20, 1995                   TAG: 9504200102
SECTION: CURRENT                    PAGE: NRV-2   EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY 
SOURCE: NEW RIVER VALLEY BUREAU
DATELINE: PULASKI                                LENGTH: Medium

STATE TAX ADMINISTRATOR TO BE TOWN'S NEW DIRECTOR OF FINANCE

Lawrence Max Beyer, regional state tax department administrator at the Roanoke District office, will become Pulaski's new finance director starting in May.

"I'm catching a moving train," Beyer said after Pulaski Town Council voted Tuesday night to hire him. "Pulaski's a vibrant town."

Mayor Andy Graham noted that the town is buying a new computer system for its Finance Department. He told Beyer that "you have an ideal opportunity to get in on the installation of the computer system, see that your staff is well trained, program the computer system and, finally, put the system into operation. ... You have a golden opportunity to make the town Finance Department into one of the finest in our commonwealth."

Graham said he thought council had the right person "to make this happen."

Council's Human Resources Committee has been interviewing candidates for months to fill the position since the resignation last year of longtime director Mildred Bolen.

Committee Chairman Roy D'Ardenne said the first application deadline was Oct. 14. The town administrative staff narrowed the field of candidates to three, and the committee conducted interviews. The position was advertised again with a Feb. 15 application deadline. This time the field was narrowed to two, and Beyer was chosen.

"We have been patient, stayed focused and considered many applicants," Graham said.

Councilman James Johnston said Anita Taylor, who managed the office while the search for a new finance director was under way, and her staff have it in the best shape ever for a new director.

Beyer became district administrator for the state Department of Taxation for the Roanoke District in 1984, and regional administrator in 1992. He worked previously in Richmond and James City County.

He has an economics degree from Western Maryland College, a master of business administration degree from Syracuse University, and is a certified public accountant.

He is retired as a lieutenant colonel after 20 years in the U.S. Army. He served in Vietnam and was decorated several times. He and his wife, Penny, have three grown sons and several grandchildren. Beyer said he plans to move from Roanoke to Pulaski.

He will have a starting salary of $38,571.

by CNB