A former Savannah city manager is making headlines once again in her current role as city manager of Rocky Mount, N.C.

Rochelle Small-Toney is under scrutiny by the Rocky Mount City Council for allegations about her hiring and spending practices — the same type of accusations that led to her forced resignation in Savannah in October 2012.

The Rocky Mount Telegram newspaper reported Monday that Small-Toney hired a friend with no apparent parks experience to serve as the city's parks and recreation director at a $130,000 salary, the high end of the pay scale for that position and $40,000 more than the previous department head.

Here in Savannah, Small-Toney hired a friend to serve as the city's emergency management director and approved a substantial pay increase. In August 2012, the employee was fired and Small-Toney reprimanded after the council discovered his application and resume contained inconsistencies, the Savannah Morning News reported.

In Rocky Mount, Small-Toney combined community and business development with a friend hired to helm the new department, the Rocky Mount Telegram reported, adding that within a few months, the five employees were gone, along with their combined institutional knowledge and experience. Several department heads have resigned since Small-Toney was hired, the paper reported.

In Savannah, Small-Toney drew criticism for allowing complete turnover in the city's purchasing department, where under her tenure, five employees resigned, were terminated or forcibly reassigned, the Savannah Morning News reported. The problems stemming from that turnover caused a backup of hundreds of requisitions for goods and services in August 2012, the newspaper reported. Every aspect of city operations was affected, from water quality to police, traffic engineering and City Hall itself. The total backlog of unpaid bills topped $6 million by Aug. 23 of that year.

Also being questioned in Rocky Mount is Small-Toney's decision to remodel her office suite without the knowledge of city council, the Rocky Mount Telegram reported Sunday. In June 2011, while city manager of Savannah, she allocated $40,000 for office renovations. Savannah City Council members only learned of the allocation after it was reported by the Savannah Morning News.

The Rocky Mount Telegram also reported that Rocky Mount has holds on positions, including recently in the crucial permitting department, as was the case six years ago in Savannah. In 2011, Savannah City Council members questioned the timing of the renovations, in a year when early retirements were mandated and about 20 layoffs and other cuts were made in the first half.

Then-Alderwoman Mary Ellen Sprague, an accountant, told the Savannah Morning News at the time, “I think people would rather have their jobs and not be fearful of losing their jobs rather than have new office furniture."

Alderman Van Johnson, who still serves on the council, also questioned the 2011 renovations. “She has the right to do it, the means to do it,” he said. “But given our delicate financial position and layoffs, is it prudent to complete at this exact moment?”

On Monday, the Rocky Mount City Council reached no public decision after meeting for over two hours in a closed session discussing Small-Toney's employment, the Rocky Mount Telegram reported. The council will meet again at 3 p.m. Monday, the newspaper reported.

Small-Toney was Savannah's first African-American and first female city manager. She is the first female city manager of Rocky Mount.

A native of Wilmington, N.C., Small-Toney has a bachelor of arts degree and a master of public administration from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, according to the Rocky Mount city website. She has worked in local government positions for over 35 years.

"Public service is something that I would say, it's just in my blood," Small-Toney said in an August 2017 interview by the Rocky Mount Review after starting her position in the city.

"My thought was if you are versed in human relations, if you are versed in human resources, if you are versed in finances, then you can pretty much manage a city," she said in the interview.