DURHAM - Hardly any Durham residents know the first thing about Tom Bonfield. But that won't keep the current city manager of Pensacola, Fla., from taking the reins at Durham City Hall.

Bonfield, 53, will replace Patrick Baker, who will move down the hall to become city attorney. An official announcement of Bonfield's hiring could come at 3 p.m. today, when the City Council holds a special meeting.

Pensacola Mayor John Fogg confirmed Monday that Bonfield would be headed to the Bull City after 10 years in Pensacola's top job. Fogg said Bonfield was an able administrator, leading the city even after Hurricane Ivan damaged city headquarters so badly that municipal operations remained scattered for two years.

"I consider Tom Bonfield absolutely the most professional city manager I've ever worked with, and he's going to be a tremendous loss to our community," Fogg said. "I know that he's going to do just as great a job there."

Bonfield was not one of the three finalists brought to Durham more than a month ago for a public forum and one-on-one private meetings with council members.

The council, after a series of closed-door sessions, couldn't reach a consensus on either George Kolb, Randy Oliver or Pat Salerno -- all of whom recently had resigned from their most recent manager gigs over disagreements with political leadership.

Bonfield was one of two would-be city manager finalists who initially backed out of consideration upon learning that they would have to go public. They feared upsetting their current employers.

But council members approached Bonfield again after being unable to reach unanimity on the three named finalists.

Bonfield did not return phone calls seeking comment. Durham City Council members clammed up as well Monday.

Pensacola, with a population of about 54,000, is roughly one-fourth the size of Durham. Its black population, while substantial at 32 percent, is behind Durham's 44 percent.

Median household income is about $41,000 in both.

Pensacola had only one homicide in 2006, the latest year for which data was available. That was the same year Durham was relieved there were only 13 homicides, compared with 35 the previous year.

Sam Hall, a Pensacola council member, said crime isn't a major concern in Pensacola. He called the police department "top notch."

But the city does face other problems, such as declining population in part because of a lack of economic opportunities.

"We are the poorest urban area in the state and are falling even further behind," Hall said Monday. "Economic development is almost nonexistent."

But Hall said that's not for lack of effort on Bonfield's part. He said council members have been obstacles when Bonfield has tried to attract more businesses and tourism.

"There were times when he was almost begging, screaming, for the City Council to give him the tools to do his job, and they just wouldn't do it," Hall said. "I think anything that was left undone here in Pensacola really doesn't rest on Tom's shoulders."

Fogg and Hall both praised Bonfield's ability to multitask and his deep well of knowledge about all city functions.

"The man can absolutely keep 100 plates in the air all turning at one time," Hall said. "He's got not only the ability to keep the plates turning without falling, he can tell you what color the plates are or if they've got a design on the top."

Hall's only criticism of Bonfield echoed a similar complaint about the three publicly named finalists: lack of communication. Hall said Bonfield didn't give council enough notice about major proposals or spending items before they went to the council for a public discussion and vote.

Bonfield also sparked controversy in 2006 when he rejected the top choice of a committee appointed to recommend a new fire chief, according to the Pensacola News-Journal. The lead candidate was a woman, leading to charges of sexism. But Bonfield told the paper she wasn't "the right fit," and later hired someone else.

(Staff researchers Brooke Cain, Susan Ebbs and Lamara Williams contributed to this report.)

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