City of Pickens Appoints Tim O’Briant as New City Administrator

Pickens, SC - January 9, 2024 - The City of Pickens officially has a new city administrator after the city council unanimously appointed Tim O’Briant to the post on January 8, 2024.

O’Briant was selected from 19 applicants following an extensive search and interview process.  His first official day on the job will be January 16. Most recently, O’Briant served the City of Aiken, SC, which has a population of 32,000, as Director of Economic Development.

In that role, O’Briant was a member of the city manager’s senior leadership team and was extensively involved in planning, development, infrastructure and policy research. He graduated from Francis Marion University with a BS in Political Science and earned a Master of Public Administration degree from Augusta University.

Prior to joining the City of Aiken, O’Briant was a media company executive for 25 years, serving as the Executive Editor of the daily Aiken Standard newspaper for more than a decade.

“My professional life has always centered around the mission of building better communities through thoughtful planning, open dialogue and decisive action,” O’Briant said. “Pickens is poised to make great leaps forward and begin writing important new chapters in its already impressive history. I can’t wait to get started helping the mayor, council, staff and the people of Pickens achieve truly amazing things.”

Mayor Isaiah Scipio echoed that sentiment and stated, "Council was unanimous in its belief that Tim is the right person to lead this city in this new era and to achieve the goals established by this Council to take advantage of the opportunities to move Pickens forward."

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